High Wind in Alaska, November 26 to 28, 1998

An intense 956mb low moved northeastward to Amchitka (in the central Aleutians) at 9pm Thursday with its front extending in an arc through Umnak Island and southward. Cold arctic air began to wrap around the storm along its northwest semicircle. Northeast wind gusts reached 54 mph at Saint Paul and 67 mph at Saint George Friday morning, with peak winds of 55 mph recorded at the one and only Bering Sea buoy near 57N/177W late Thursday night. By Friday morning, the storm was located close to 200 miles south of Dutch Harbor as an intense 949mb center. Several ship reports of sustained winds close to 70 mph were received out about 300 miles along the western semicircle of the storm...with at least one gust reaching 92 mph Friday morning as reported by the "Coastal Ranger" about 80 miles south southwest of Umnak Island. Later in the day Friday, as the storm moved south southeast of Dutch Harbor...wind gusts reached 105 mph in squalls as reported on the augmented AWOS at the airport. Williwas and black water were also reported, indicative of extreme low level turbulence in the area. Strong pressure rises reached +9.5 mbs/3 hours between 1pm and 4pm, right about the time of the strongest winds...reflecting the extremely tight pressure gradient around the storm. By late Friday morning, the front associated with the storm extended in an arc through just north of Cold Bay east and southeast into the northeast Pacific. Easterly winds reached 47 mph in gusts at King Salmon close to noon Friday and 47 mph at Kodiak just a few hours later just prior to the frontal passage at 6pm Friday evening. Winds at the Homer Spit gusted as high as 43 mph at 4pm Friday and 54 mph at Middleton Island at 5 pm.On Saturday, wind gusts of 65 mph were recorded at the Portage ASOS and 57 mph at the Cordova boat harbor.