Blizzard in Alaska, December 5 to 8, 2004

Name: Blizzard in Alaska, December 5 to 8, 2004
Start: 2004-12-05T08:55
End: 2004-12-08T21:00
Location: Alaska

December 5 to 8, 2004 · NWS AFG · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

Strong high pressure over eastern Russia and low pressure over Bristol Bay produced north winds strong enough to create blizzard conditions in zone 213 (probably Tin City, likely at Gambell) as well as zone 214 (Cape Romanzof) for at least several periods of time during the event. Observations were not always available from these sites but from synoptic charts it appears there was little…

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.

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 5, 6:00 AM AST, 2 hours 55 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 5, 6:00 AM AST, 2 hours 55 minutes before

NORTH ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
600 AM AST SUN DEC 5 2004

.DISCUSSION...

.ALOFT...LOW OVER THE WESTERN BERING SEA WILL MOVE EAST AND BE
OVER THE PRIBILOFS MON AFTERNOON THEN OVER THE GULF OF ALASKA TUE
NIGHT AND WED. RIDGE AHEAD OF THE LOW WILL EXTEND NORTH TO THE
WESTERN INTERIOR SUN NIGHT THEN WILL MOVE EAST AND ON TUE WILL BE
A CLOSED HIGH OVER THE WESTERN YUKON TERRITORY OF CANADA.

.SURFACE...VERTICALLY STACKED LOW OVER THE WESTERN BERING SEA WILL
MOVE EAST AND BE NEAR NUNIVAK ISLAND MON AFTERNOON. AN OCCLUDED
FRONT OUT AHEAD OF THE LOW WILL EXTEND FROM SAINT MATTHEW ISLAND
TO CAPE ROMANZOF TO COLD BAY LATE THIS AFTERNOON. ON MON AFTERNOON
THE FRONT WILL EXTEND FROM SAINT LAWRENCE ISLAND ACROSS NORTON
SOUND AND SOUTHEAST TO KODIAK ISLAND. ANOTHER LOW WELL TO THE
SOUTHWEST OF THE BERING SEA WILL REMAIN SOUTH OF THE ALEUTIAN
ISLANDS AS IT MOVES RAPIDLY EAST. THE LOW WILL BE OVER THE
SOUTHERN GULF OF ALASKA ON TUE.

.NORTH SLOPE...WINDS WILL BE GENERALLY LIGHT FROM BARROW EAST
THROUGH MID WEEK. WINDS OVER THE WESTERN ARCTIC COAST WILL BEGIN
TO INCREASE TONIGHT AS THE BERING SEA LOW MOVES EAST. THE
STRONGEST WINDS WILL BE OVER CAPE LISBURNE WITH MUCH LIGHTER WINDS
NORTHWARD. ANY FLURRIES OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS WILL BE MAINLY
WEST OF BARROW. THERE IS THE CHANCE OF A FEW FLURRIES OVER THE
BEAUFORT SEA COAST AT MID WEEK AS A WEAK ARCTIC LOW MOVES SOUTH
TOWARD THE AREA.

.WEST COAST... NORTHEAST WINDS WILL INCREASE OVER MUCH OF THE WEST
COAST TODAY AND CONTINUE INTO MID WEEK. BLOWING SNOW IS EXPECTED
TO CAUSE VERY LOW VISIBILITIES OVER ZONE 213...THEREFORE A WINTER
STORM WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED. WINDS WILL REMAIN STRONG OVER SAINT
LAWRENCE ISLAND FOR SEVERAL DAYS. THE NEXT BEST BET FOR BLOWING
SNOW AND LOW VISIBILITIES WILL BE OVER THE YUKON DELTA...THOUGH
CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN ABOVE ADVISORY LEVELS TODAY.

.INTERIOR...DRY AND COLD WEATHER IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE FOR MUCH
OF THE INTERIOR THROUGH THIS WEEK. BREEZY WINDS MAY REACH THE
WESTERN MOST INTERIOR TONIGHT AS A BERING SEA LOW MOVES EAST. A
LITTLE LIGHT SNOW MAY FALL OVER THE WESTERN INTERIOR BY TUE
EVENING...BUT THIS SHOULD BE SHORT LIVED. EAST WINDS COULD BECOME
BREEZY TUE...ESPECIALLY OVER HIGHER TERRAIN...AS LOW PRESSURE
MOVES EAST INTO THE GULF OF ALASKA. WIND CHILLS OVER HIGHER
TERRAIN WILL BE MONITORED.

.AFG WATCH/WARNING/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...WINTER STORM WARNING ZONE 213 ST LAWRENCE ISLAND AND
            BERING STRAIT COAST
         WIND ADVISORY ZONE 212 EASTERN NORTON SOUND AND NULATO
            HILLS
MARINE...GALE WARNING AREA 9B DALL POINT TO WALES
         HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY WARNING:
            AREA 9B DALL POINT TO WALES
            AREA 10B WALES TO CAPE LISBURNE
         BRISK WIND ADVISORY AREA 9A NORTON SOUND
         SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY AREA 10B WALES TO CAPE LISBURNE

DA DEC 04

Event by event

2 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.

Blizzard, Yukon Delta

When: December 5, 8:55 AM AST to December 6, 3:07 PM AST
Where: Yukon Delta forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Blizzard, St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait

When: December 7, 12:55 PM AST to December 8, 9:00 PM AST
Where: St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait forecast zone
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.

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: 5432410, 5432409.