High Wind, Tanana Valley
- When
- December 17, 10:00 AM AST to December 19, 8:00 PM AST
- Where
- Tanana Valley forecast zone
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph)
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Blizzard and Winter Storm in Alaska, December 17 to 20, 2000
High pressure over eastern Siberia and the Yukon Territory combined with several low pressure systems moving north over the Bering Sea brought blizzard conditions and strong winds to northwest Alaska. Enough warm air moved north from the last of the weather fronts to cause brief freezing rain at Deering in zone 3 during the middle of the afternoon on the 19th.
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 7
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 AFG wrote it up.
High pressure over eastern Siberia and the Yukon Territory combined with several low pressure systems moving north over the Bering Sea brought blizzard conditions and strong winds to northwest Alaska. Enough warm air moved north from the last of the weather fronts to cause brief freezing rain at Deering in zone 3 during the middle of the afternoon on the 19th. Strong winds also occurred over the Tanana Valley along the Tanana River where the associated weather fronts moving over Alaska intensified the East winds at Delta Junction, as well as south winds through the Alaska Range, blowing at Healy.Blizzard conditions were reported at:Zone 3: KotzebueZone 6: NomeZone 9: Tin CityZone 1: Point LayHigh Winds were reported at:Zone 3: Point Hope AWOS: 51 mph sustained, gust 61 mph.Zone 7: Delta Junction ASOS: 48 mph sustained, gust 60 mph afternoon of the 17th; Healy: 35 mph sustained, gust 60 mph evening of the 19th.
Event by event
4 blizzard, 2 high wind, 1 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
High Wind, Lower Kobuk Valley-Northern Seward Peninsula
- When
- December 18, 9:00 AM AST to 1:00 PM AST
- Where
- Lower Kobuk Valley-Northern Seward Peninsula forecast zone
- Measured
- 53 kt (61 mph)
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Blizzard, Southern Seward Peninsula-Eastern Norton Sound
- When
- December 19, 12:00 AM AST to 1:00 AM AST
- Where
- Southern Seward Peninsula-Eastern Norton Sound forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Blizzard, St. Lawrence Island-Bering Strait Coast
- When
- December 19, 1:00 AM AST to 2:00 AM AST
- Where
- St. Lawrence Island-Bering Strait Coast forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Blizzard, Lower Kobuk Valley-Northern Seward Peninsula
- When
- December 19, 2:23 AM AST to 3:35 AM AST
- Where
- Lower Kobuk Valley-Northern Seward Peninsula forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Winter Storm, Lower Kobuk Valley-Northern Seward Peninsula
- When
- December 19, 2:42 PM AST to 4:00 PM AST
- Where
- Lower Kobuk Valley-Northern Seward Peninsula forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Blizzard, Arctic Slope Coastal
- When
- December 19, 4:00 PM AST to December 20, 5:00 AM AST
- Where
- Arctic Slope Coastal forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
What these are
- High Wind
- Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
- Blizzard
- Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or more with falling or blowing snow that cuts visibility below a quarter mile for three hours or longer.
- Winter Storm
- A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Heavy Snow in Alaska, December 17 to 18, 2000
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in New York, December 17 to 18, 2000
- Tornado and Damaging Wind in Georgia, December 17, 2000
- Flash Flooding in New York, December 17, 2000
- Heavy Snow in Michigan, December 17, 2000
- Flash Flood in Vermont, December 17 to 18, 2000
- Flash Flooding in Pennsylvania, December 17, 2000
- Lightning Strike in Pennsylvania, December 17, 2000
- Lightning Strike in New Jersey, December 17, 2000
- Flash Flooding and Flood in Massachusetts, December 17 to 18, 2000
- Flash Flooding and High Wind in Connecticut, December 17, 2000
- High Wind in North Carolina, December 17, 2000
More
Every storm in Alaska in 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, December 2000
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: 5177599, 5177596, 5177594, 5177595, 5177593, 5177598, 5177597.