High Wind in Alaska, April 16 to 17, 1998

Name: High Wind in Alaska, April 16 to 17, 1998
Start: 1998-04-16T12:00
End: 1998-04-17T23:59
Location: Alaska

April 16 to 17, 1998 · NWS AFC · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

A moderate front pushed north through the area Friday morning. Wind gusts of 78 mph were recorded at the Portage Visitor Center as the front moved through.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS AFC wrote it up.

A moderate front pushed north through the area Friday morning. Wind gusts of 78 mph were recorded at the Portage Visitor Center as the front moved through. Late Thursday and Friday morning, as the front approached, winds gusted as high as 51 mph at Middleton Island.

Event by event

2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Central Gulf Coast

When: April 16, 12:00 PM AST to April 17, 4:00 AM AST
Where: Central Gulf Coast forecast zone
Measured: 44 kt (51 mph)

High Wind, Cook Inlet

When: April 17, 8:00 AM AST to 11:59 PM AST
Where: Cook Inlet forecast zone
Measured: 68 kt (78 mph)

What these are

High Wind: Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Alaska in 1998 Every state in 1998 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, April 1998

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5629486, 5629485.