Alaska, 2002

High Wind in Alaska, December 31, 2002

December 31, 2002 · NWS AFC · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 high wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

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 forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Anchorage, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 31, 2:29 AM AST, 6 hours 31 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 31, 2:29 AM AST, 6 hours 31 minutes before
SOUTH/SOUTHWEST ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
900 PM AST MON DEC 30 2002

ANALYSIS...ETA/AVN ABOUT 4 MB TOO SHALLOW IN GULF AT 00Z BUT
GENERALLY SIMILAR. AVN GENERALLY FAVORED HOWEVER WILL KEEP
PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND LOW PER ETA. FILLING INCREASES THROUGH THE
NIGHT. MOVEMENT INTO NORTHERN PANHANDLE 00Z WED WEAKENING NORTH
OF COASTAL RANGE THEREAFTER. LOW REMAINS IN PRINCE WILLIAM SOUTH
AREA THROUGH WED MORNING. INVERTED TROF PERSISTING OVER PRINCE
WILLIAM SOUND. UPPER TROF MOVING IN FROM WEST SHOULD KEEP GOOD
DUMP OF SNOW NORTHERN PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND THROUGH MOST OF DAY
TUE AND KICK OFF SOME SNOW COOK INLET/SUSITNA VALLEY TUE
MORNING.

ALEUTIAN FRONT WEAKENING. SERIES OF WAVES ALONG FRONT SOUTH OF
50N LEAVES FRONT STRETCHED FROM SOUTH OF PRIBS TO NEAR CAPE
SARICHEF EAST SOUTHEAST 12Z WED TO LOW NEAR 51N 145W. LOW MOVES
JUST OFF SITKA IN LOW 980S 06Z THU.

FORECASTS...

.AFC...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY
PUBLIC...NONE.
MARINE...GALE 12B,13,15.
FXAK68 PAFC 310629
&ZCZC ANCAFDAFC

SOUTH/SOUTHWEST ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
900 PM AST MON DEC 30 2002

ANALYSIS...ETA/AVN ABOUT 4 MB TOO SHALLOW IN GULF AT 00Z BUT
GENERALLY SIMILAR. AVN GENERALLY FAVORED HOWEVER WILL KEEP
PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND LOW PER ETA. FILLING INCREASES THROUGH THE
NIGHT. MOVEMENT INTO NORTHERN PANHANDLE 00Z WED WEAKENING NORTH
OF COASTAL RANGE THEREAFTER. LOW REMAINS IN PRINCE WILLIAM SOUTH
AREA THROUGH WED MORNING. INVERTED TROF PERSISTING OVER PRINCE
WILLIAM SOUND. UPPER TROF MOVING IN FROM WEST SHOULD KEEP GOOD
DUMP OF SNOW NORTHERN PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND THROUGH MOST OF DAY
TUE AND KICK OFF SOME SNOW COOK INLET/SUSITNA VALLEY TUE
MORNING.

ALEUTIAN FRONT WEAKENING. SERIES OF WAVES ALONG FRONT SOUTH OF
50N LEAVES FRONT STRETCHED FROM SOUTH OF PRIBS TO NEAR CAPE
SARICHEF EAST SOUTHEAST 12Z WED TO LOW NEAR 51N 145W. LOW MOVES
JUST OFF SITKA IN LOW 980S 06Z THU.

FORECASTS...

.AFC...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY
PUBLIC...NONE.
MARINE...GALE 12B,13,15.

Event by event

1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Western Aleutians

When
December 31, 9:00 AM AST to 6:00 PM AST
Where
Western Aleutians forecast zone
Measured
60 kt (69 mph)
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong pressure gradients between a 1039 mb high over far eastern Russia and a 966 mb low 150 miles southwest of Shemya produced strong westerly winds across much of the extreme western Aleutians. On Tuesday, gusts peaked at 69 mph just before noon AST at Shemya. Additionally, a ship in the area reported gusts of 60 mph at 3 pm Tuesday.

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 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, December 2002

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: 5323507.