Alaska, 1998

High Wind in Alaska, May 13 to 15, 1998

May 13 to 15, 1998 · NWS AFC · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

A strong 976mb low moved into the western Aleutians from the western Pacific early Thursday. finally weakening near the Bering Strait late Friday.

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
6

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 strong 976mb low moved into the western Aleutians from the western Pacific early Thursday. The low moved by the Pribilofs early Friday...finally weakening near the Bering Strait late Friday. The associated front moved north and east...into the southwest Alaskan Coast early Friday...finally weakening in an arc from the northwest corner of the State into east Anchorage and across Middleton Island at 10 pm Friday. Moderate to locally strong southeasterly winds preceded the front...reaching gusts of 72 mph along the Anchorage Hillside and through Turnagain Arm. Brisk westerly winds were reported along the "back" side of the low along the Aleutians and Alaska Peninsula...gusting locally from 50 to near 60 mph.

Event by event

6 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Aleutian Islands

When
May 13, 12:00 PM AST to May 15, 12:00 PM AST
Where
Aleutian Islands forecast zone
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)

High Wind, Western Alaska Peninsula

When
May 14, 6:00 AM AST to May 15, 6:00 AM AST
Where
Western Alaska Peninsula forecast zone
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)

High Wind, Pribilof Islands

When
May 14, 10:00 AM AST to 10:00 PM AST
Where
Pribilof Islands forecast zone
Measured
40 kt (46 mph)

High Wind, Kuskokwim Delta

When
May 14, 6:00 PM AST to May 15, 6:00 AM AST
Where
Kuskokwim Delta forecast zone
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)

High Wind, Cook Inlet

When
May 15, 6:00 AM AST to 6:00 PM AST
Where
Cook Inlet forecast zone
Measured
63 kt (72 mph)

High Wind, Central Gulf Coast

When
May 15, 12:00 PM AST to 11:59 PM AST
Where
Central Gulf Coast forecast zone
Measured
52 kt (60 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

More

Every storm in Alaska in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, May 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: 5676570, 5676572, 5676571, 5676573, 5676574, 5676575.