Heavy Snow in Alaska, December 1, 2004

Name: Heavy Snow in Alaska, December 1, 2004
Start: 2004-12-01T18:00
End: 2004-12-01T18:00
Location: Alaska

December 1, 2004 · NWS AFG · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Six inches of snow reported by Galena Co-operative Observer at 1800 LST on the 1st. Snow had diminished by 1800 LST.

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.

Six inches of snow reported by Galena Co-operative Observer at 1800 LST on the 1st. Snow had diminished by 1800 LST. Time snow began is unknown due to missing hourly observations, but accumulation occurred within 24 hours.

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 Dec 1, 2:30 PM AST, 3 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 1, 2:30 PM AST, 3 hours 30 minutes before

NORTH ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
230 PM AST WED DEC 1 2004

.DISCUSSION...THE LOW THAT WAS OVER THE KENAI PENINSULA AT 9AM
IS LIFTING OUT OVER THE SOUTHEAST INTERIOR. SNOWFALL OVER INTERIOR
ALASKA NORTH AND WEST OF PAFA WILL SPREAD EASTWARD AS THE SURFACE
LOW REDEVELOPS AS ABOUT A 986 MB CENTER EAST OF PAEG BY 9PM TONIGHT.
SNOWFALL OVER THE SOUTHERN INTERIOR WILL END THU MORNING AS WINDS
ALOFT BECOME SOUTHERLY AHEAD OF THE NEXT LOW...THOUGH IT MAY
PERSIST WELL INTO THE MORNING OVER SOUTHWESTERN SLOPES OF HIGHER
TERRAIN. SNOWFALL WILL BE SLOWER TO END OVER THE NORTHERN INTERIOR
BUT WILL BECOME INTERMITTENT OR SHOWERY THU AFTERNOON WITH QPFS
QUITE LOW.

THE NEXT LOW...PRESENTLY ABOUT 975 MB SOUTH OF PADU...WILL MOVE
INTO THE NORTHERN GULF OF ALASKA BY 3PM THU THEN LIFT OUT OVER
THE SOUTHERN YUKON TERRITORY THU NIGHT. THIS IS THE FEATURE
EXPECTED TO ENTRAIN THE COLD AIR OVER THE BEAUFORT SEA...USHERING
IN THE SHARPLY COLDER TEMPERATURES (I.E. NEAR NORMAL) EXPECTED
OVER NORTHERN ALASKA FOR THE WEEKEND. IT IS BY NO MEANS CERTAIN
THAT THIS REPRESENTS A REGIME CHANGE THOUGH...AS A RETURN TO
SOUTHERLY FLOW ALOFT APPEARS TO BE IN THE WORKS FOR EARLY NEXT
WEEK.

.AFG WATCH/WARNING/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...WINTER STORM WARNING ZONE 201 FROM PPIZ WWD.
         WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY ZONE 219.
MARINE...HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY AREAS 9B AND 10B.
         SCA/BWA AREAS 10B...11A...11B.

DJH DEC 04

Event by event

1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Lower Koyukuk Middle Ykn Vlys

When: December 1, 6:00 PM AST
Where: Lower Koyukuk Middle Ykn Vlys forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.

What these are

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 2004 Every state in 2004 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, December 2004

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: 5432538.