Blizzard and High Wind in Alaska, January 24 to 27, 2004

Name: Blizzard and High Wind in Alaska, January 24 to 27, 2004
Start: 2004-01-24T21:55
End: 2004-01-27T13:53
Location: Alaska

January 24 to 27, 2004 · NWS AFG · 8 events in 7 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $150,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 8

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.

Strong high pressure over the Arctic Ocean on the 24th moved southeast to the Yukon Territory of Canada on the 25th. On the 27th and 28th, broad low pressure over the Aleutian Islands and Southern Bering Sea strengthened and an associated weather front moved north a bit in the Bering Sea before weakening late on the 27th. This caused strong easterly winds to develop over channeled areas across northern Alaska, such as:Zone 201: Cape Lisburne AWOS peak gust 63 knots (73 mph).Zone 211: Golovin AWOS peak gust 56 knots (64 mph).Zone 212: Unalakleet AWOS: peak gust 54 knots (62 mph) occasionally through the entire 2 and one-half days.Zone 214: Cape Romanzof AWOS peak gust 57 knots (66 mph).Zone 223: Delta Junction ASOS peak gust 52 knots (60 mph).Strong winds were reported at:Zone 221: Nenana: A 70 ft. by 120 ft. Quonset Hut owned by Toghotthele,a Native Investment Corporation a few miles north of Nenana, was entirely blown down. Nenana ASOS reported peak wind of 45 knots (52 mph).Blizzard conditions likely occurred at:Zone 214: Cape Romanzof AWOS

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 Jan 24, 2:30 PM AST, 7 hours 25 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 24, 2:30 PM AST, 7 hours 25 minutes before

NORTH ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
230 PM AST SAT JAN 24 2004

.DISCUSSION...
SURFACE...A 1051 MB HIGH IS CENTERED NEAR OLD CROW AND WILL
STRENGTHEN TO 1055 MB AS IT DROPS SOUTH INTO THE CENTRAL YUKON BY
MONDAY. RIDGING EXTENDS NW FROM THE HIGH OVER THE ARCTIC AND WILL
BUILD SOUTH ALONG THE BROOKS RANGE BY SUNDAY NIGHT. A WEAK TROUGH
EXTENDS FROM NORTH OF WRANGEL ISLAND SE THROUGH THE NW ARCTIC
COAST INTO THE WRN INTERIOR. THIS FEATURE IS HELPING TO INCREASE
WINDS ALONG THE NW AND CENTRAL ARCTIC COAST, CAUSING AREAS OF
BLOWING SNOW. A 986 MB LOW IS OVER THE WRN BERING SEA WITH A
SECOND CENTER FARTHER SOUTH ACROSS THE WRN ALEUTIANS. THESE LOWS
WILL MOVE WEST AND DISSIPATE OVER ERN RUSSIA BY MONDAY. A 970 MB
LOW WILL MOVE INTO THE SRN BERING SEA ON MONDAY. THE STRONG WINDS
ALOFT AND INCREASING SOLAR RADIATION ARE ERODING STRONG BUT
SHALLOW INVERSION OVER THE CENTRAL INTERIOR.

ALOFT...A UPR TROUGH EXTENDS WEST FROM THE CENTRAL YUKON INTO THE
SE INTERIOR WITH VORT ENERGY NEAR NORTHWAY. BOTH OF THESE FEATURES
WILL DROP SOUTH OVER THE NRN GULF BY SUNDAY NIGHT. A 552 DM HIGH
HAS BECOME CUT-OFF OVER THE WRN INTERIOR WITH A RIDGE EXTENDING
NORTH TO EAST OF WRANGEL ISLAND. THE HIGH WILL MAINTAIN ITS
STRENGTH AS IT MOVES NORTH OVER THE SW ARCTIC OCEAN BY MONDAY.
RIDGING WILL EXTEND SE FROM THE HIGH TO THE NRN YUKON AND SOUTH
ALONG THE WEST COAST. CURRENT SE UPR FLOW OVER THE WEST COAST WILL
TURN EAST ON MONDAY. UPR FLOW OVER THE INTERIOR WILL TURN FROM
NORTH TO NORTHEAST BY MONDAY AND REMAIN FAIRLY STRONG.

MODELS...ETA A FEW MILLIBARS STRONGER THAN AVN WITH NE ALASKA HIGH
WHICH SEEMS MORE IN LINE WITH CURRENT 1051 MB SURFACE PROG. ETA
TOO WEAK WITH WRN BERING WITH THE STRONGER AVN SOLUTION BEING
PREFERRED. WE WILL USE ETA FOR MOST OF THE FORECAST DETAILS, BUT
BLEND IN THE AVN FOR BERING SEA AREAS. IN THE EXTENDED MODELS
CONTINUE TO HOLD UPR RIDGE OVER THE STATE, WHICH WILL ACT TO
DEFLECT STORMS OVER THE WRN BERING THROUGH MID-WEEK.

.AFG...WATCH/WARNING/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...WIND CHILL ADVISORY ZONE 201..WIND ADVISORY ZONE 202.
         WIND ADVISORY ZONE..212
MARINE...BRISK WIND ADVISORY FOR THE FOLLOWING AREAS:
            AREA 9A NORTON SOUND.
            AREA 9B DALL POINT TO WALES.
            AREA 10A KOTZEBUE SOUND.
            AREA 10B WALES TO CAPE LISBURNE.

CS JAN 04

Event by event

6 high wind, 1 blizzard, 1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Western Arctic Coast

When: January 24, 9:55 PM AST to January 25, 1:25 AM AST
Where: Western Arctic Coast forecast zone
Measured: 63 kt (72 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Ern Norton Sound Nulato Hills

When: January 24, 10:16 PM AST to January 27, 12:16 PM AST
Where: Ern Norton Sound Nulato Hills forecast zone
Measured: 54 kt (62 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Srn Seward Peninsula Coast

When: January 26, 5:56 AM AST to 9:35 PM AST
Where: Srn Seward Peninsula Coast forecast zone
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Upper Koyukuk Valley

When: January 26, 12:25 PM AST to 1:25 PM AST
Where: Upper Koyukuk Valley forecast zone
Measured: 51 kt (59 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Deltana and Tanana

When: January 26, 12:36 PM AST to January 27, 1:53 PM AST
Where: Deltana and Tanana forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Yukon Delta

When: January 26, 10:55 PM AST to January 27, 3:55 AM AST
Where: Yukon Delta forecast zone
Measured: 57 kt (66 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Blizzard, Yukon Delta

When: January 26, 11:55 PM AST to January 27, 6:55 AM AST
Where: Yukon Delta forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Strong Wind, Wrn Tanana Vly Wrn Yukon Vly

When: January 27, 12:00 AM AST to 9:55 AM AST
Where: Wrn Tanana Vly Wrn Yukon Vly forecast zone
Measured: 45 kt (52 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $150,000
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA

What these are

High Wind: Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
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.
Strong Wind: Non-thunderstorm winds below high wind criteria that nonetheless caused damage or casualties.

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, January 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: 5381301, 5381302, 5381304, 5381305, 5381303, 5381306, 5381307, 5381308.