Blizzard, St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait
- When
- January 1, 1:34 PM AST to 4:00 PM AST
- Where
- St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait forecast zone
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Blizzard and High Wind in Alaska, January 1 to 3, 2002
A deepening low over the southwest Bering Sea coupled with a building high over Siberia resulted in a very tight pressure gradient over the Bering Strait resulting in blizzard conditions at Tin CIty and high winds across St Lawrence Island. Wind gusts reached as high as 65 knots (75 mph) at the Gambell AWOS.
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 2
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.
A deepening low over the southwest Bering Sea coupled with a building high over Siberia resulted in a very tight pressure gradient over the Bering Strait resulting in blizzard conditions at Tin CIty and high winds across St Lawrence Island. Wind gusts reached as high as 65 knots (75 mph) at the Gambell AWOS.
Event by event
1 blizzard, 1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
High Wind, St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait
- When
- January 1, 2:35 PM AST to January 3, 5:35 AM AST
- Where
- St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait forecast zone
- Measured
- 65 kt (75 mph)
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
What these are
- 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.
- 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
- Heavy Rain in California, January 1 to 3, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Mississippi, January 1 to 2, 2002
- Drought in New Jersey, January 1 to 31, 2002
- Drought in Georgia, January 1 to 31, 2002
- Drought in New York, January 1 to 31, 2002
- Winter Storm in Louisiana, January 1 to 2, 2002
- Drought in Pennsylvania, January 1 to 31, 2002
- Heavy Snow in Texas, January 1, 2002
- Drought in Texas, January 1 to 31, 2002
- Drought in New Jersey, January 1 to 31, 2002
- High Surf in Hawaii, January 1, 2002
- Drought in Maryland, January 1 to 31, 2002
More
Every storm in Alaska in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, January 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: 5279683, 5279684.