High Wind in Alaska, September 30, 2003

Name: High Wind in Alaska, September 30, 2003
Start: 2003-09-30T09:30
End: 2003-09-30T23:59
Location: Alaska

September 30, 2003 · NWS AFG · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Several weather systems moving north over Alaska from the Gulf of Alaska produced a periods of strong winds across the Alaska Range. S.

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 happened

The episode as NWS AFG wrote it up.

Several weather systems moving north over Alaska from the Gulf of Alaska produced a periods of strong winds across the Alaska Range. In zone 226, One of the mesonet meteorological stations (Texas Range) maintained by the U.S. Army reported winds as high as 71 mph. Delta Junction ASOS in zone 223 reported a peak gust of 56 mph, though no injuries or damage was reported. Event continued into October.

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 Fairbanks, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 30, 5:00 AM AST, 4 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 30, 5:00 AM AST, 4 hours 30 minutes before

NORTH ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
600 AM ADT TUE SEP 30 2003

UPPER AIR...RIDGE EXTENDING NORTHWARD OVER WESTERN CANADA WILL
BEGIN TO MOVE A LITTLE EASTWARD WED NIGHT AND CONTINUE A SLOW
EAST MOVEMENT THROUGH THE WEEKEND. LOW PRESSURES WILL ROTATE
THROUGH A LONG WAVE TROUGH SOUTH OVER EASTERN RUSSIA TO THE
BERING SEA. THE TROUGH WILL EXTEND SOUTH TO THE ALEUTIANS.
THE RIDGE AND TROUGH COMBINATION WILL CONTINUE TO PRODUCE A
GENERAL SOUTH FLOW OVER NORTHERN ALASKA THROUGH THE WEEKEND.

SURFACE...A 990 MB LOW PRESSURE WILL FORM OVER BRISTOL BAY THIS
EVENING AND STRENGTHEN AS IT MOVES NORTH. AT 4AM ADT WED THE LOW
WILL BE 982 MB NEAR BETHEL. AT 4PM ADT WED THE LOW WILL BE 980 MB
NEAR THE BERING STRAIT. AT 4AM ADT THU THE LOW WILL BE 977 MB
OVER EASTERN RUSSIA NEAR KOLYUCHIN BAY. AN UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL
SWEEP THE LOW NORTH OVER THE CHUKCHI SEA THU NIGHT THEN WELL
NORTHEAST INTO THE ARCTIC FRI AND FRI NIGHT.

NORTH SLOPE...EAST WINDS WILL BECOME SOUTH AS LOW PRESSURE MOVES
NORTH ALONG THE WEST COAST. MOST OF THE PRECIPITATION WITH THE
SYSTEM WILL REMAIN FROM BARROW WEST. SOUTHERLY WINDS WED THROUGH
THU WILL BE QUITE STRONG OVER HIGHER TERRAIN.

WEST COAST...STRONG WINDS TO DEVELOP WED AS LOW PRESSURE MOVES
NORTH OF EMMONAK TO THE BERING STRAIT. HIGHER TERRAIN WINDS AND
CHANNELED WINDS COULD REACH 50 MPH. HEIGHT FALLS IN THE WAKE OF
THE LOW WILL OCCUR WED NIGHT AND THU AS AN UPPER LEVEL LOW OVER
THE NORTHWESTERN BERING SEA MOVES NORTHEAST. TEMPERATURES WILL
TURN NOTICEABLY COOLER OVER MOST AREAS WED NIGHT AND THU BUT WILL
WARM AGAIN DURING THE WEEKEND AS ANOTHER WARM AIR MASS MOVES IN
FROM THE SOUTHEAST.

INTERIOR...MOST OF THE WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH LOW PRESSURE MOVING
NORTH OVER THE WEST COAST WILL BE OVER THE WESTERN INTERIOR.
SOUTH WINDS OVER HIGHER TERRAIN OF THE WESTERN INTERIOR COULD
REACH 50 MPH WED. WINDS OVER THE EASTERN ALASKA RANGE AND DELTA
COULD AGAIN BECOME STRONG WED AND WED NIGHT.

MARINE...LOW PRESSURE MOVING NORTH ALONG THE WEST COAST WILL
PRODUCE STRONG NORTHERLY WINDS TONIGHT AND WED WITH A TURN TO
SOUTH AS THE LOW MOVES NORTHWEST OF THE BERING STRAIT WED
EVENING. ON THE ARCTIC COAST THE LOW WILL CAUSE EAST WINDS
BECOMING SOUTH.

.AFG...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY
PUBLIC...NONE
MARINE...GALE WARNING FOR THE FOLLOWING AREAS:
            AREA 14, SAINT MATTHEW ISLAND WATERS.
            AREA 9B, DALL POINT TO WALES INCLUDING THE SAINT
                LAWRENCE ISLAND WATERS.
            AREA 10B, WALES TO CAPE LISBURNE.
         SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR THE FOLLOWING AREAS:
            AREA 9A, NORTON SOUND FROM SLEDGE ISLAND TO NUNAKTUK
                ISLAND.
            AREA 10A, KOTZEBUE SOUND.
            AREA 11A, CAPE LISBURNE TO CAPE HALKETT.

DA SEP 03

Event by event

1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Ne. Slopes of the Ern Ak Rng

When: September 30, 9:30 AM AST to 11:59 PM AST
Where: Ne. Slopes of the Ern Ak Rng forecast zone
Measured: 62 kt (71 mph) measured gust
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.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Alaska in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, September 2003

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: 5336862.