Winter Storm and Heavy Snow in Alaska, January 26 to 28, 2000

Name: Winter Storm and Heavy Snow in Alaska, January 26 to 28, 2000
Start: 2000-01-26T00:00
End: 2000-01-28T23:00
Location: Alaska

January 26 to 28, 2000 · NWS AFC · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 3
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $12,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 4

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 complex low, preceded by a northward moving front through Prince William Sound and the Kenai Peninsula, moved northward through Prince William Sound Wednesday. On the 'heels' of the low, modified arctic air poured east and southeastward into the Cook Inlet area from the western Alaska range, enhancing snowfall. Highway reports early Wednesday reported white out conditions around Girdwood (MP90 on the Seward highway) along with 30 - 50 mph winds and temperatures of 32F. 12"-15" of new snow was reported around Seward. 6" of new snow was reported around Homer, with drifting snow along the ridge and around East End Road. Also on Wednesday, heavy snow and east winds 10 - 20 mph were reported in Thompson Pass (MP 337 of the Richardson Highway). 8" of new snow was reprted at Ernestine (MP 302), along with a south wind gusting to 50 mph. Gusty winds were also reported in the Copper River Basin (around 35 mph), along with about 5" of new snow at Chitina.From 7 am Wednesday through 7 am Thursday, DOT observations (past 24 hours) reported 10 to 40 mph winds with 12" - 16" of new snow at Girdwood, snow and whiteout conditions at Silvertip (MP57 along the Seward highway), 12" - 14" of new snow at Moose Pass and 6" of new snow in Seward. Around Cooper Landing poor visibilities were reported along with 6" - 8" of new snow. Ninilchik recorded up to 6" of new snow, with 12" - 14" falling around Homer (again with drifting along the ridge and out along East End Road). East to southeast wind 16-21 mph along with heavy snow was reported in Thompson Pass. Cordova received 15" of wet snow.By 7 am Friday, DOT observations recorded 24 hour snowfall of between 2.5" - 8" around Anchorage, 4" or less around Girdwood, 12" of new snow around Wasilla, 4" or less around Cantwell. Heavy snow was again reported in Thompson Pass. Reports around Turnagain Pass indicated snowfall rates of 3"/hour (fail rate is about 2 1/2"/hour). Turnagain Pass received 20" of new snow between Thursday and Friday. Seward received an incredible 1' of snow in 6 hours Friday, resulting in school closings at both Seward Elementary and Moose Pass Elementary schools. Heavy snows during the week were reported across upper elevations in Girdwood Valley. Amounts of snowfall in this area ranged upwards of 6' during the past week, along with episodes of high winds.An avalanche in Whittier caused cancellation of train service on Friday.Snow machine deaths, primarily weather related, were reported in Nikiski (2) and Big Lake (1).

Event by event

3 winter storm, 1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Central Gulf Coast

When: January 26, 12:00 AM AST to January 28, 3:00 AM AST
Where: Central Gulf Coast forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS

Winter Storm, Copper River Basin

When: January 26, 12:00 AM AST to 11:59 PM AST
Where: Copper River Basin forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS

Winter Storm, Cook Inlet

When: January 26, 10:00 AM AST to January 28, 3:00 AM AST
Where: Cook Inlet forecast zone
Deaths: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $6,000
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS

Heavy Snow, Susitna Valley

When: January 27, 7:00 AM AST to January 28, 11:00 PM AST
Where: Susitna Valley forecast zone
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $6,000
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Winter Storm, Cook Inlet	2000-01-28	48	Female	Outside/Open Areas	Direct
Winter Storm, Cook Inlet	2000-01-28	45	Male	Outside/Open Areas	Direct
Heavy Snow, Susitna Valley	2000-01-28	33	Male	Outside/Open Areas	Direct

What these are

Winter Storm: A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.
Heavy Snow: Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Alaska in 2000 Every state in 2000 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, January 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: 5126972, 5127205, 5127204, 5127206.