High Wind in Alaska, November 27, 2004

Name: High Wind in Alaska, November 27, 2004
Start: 2004-11-27T02:15
End: 2004-11-27T16:45
Location: Alaska

November 27, 2004 · NWS AFG · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A low pressure center in the eastern Bering Sea sent a weather front north over the state causing strong winds in the central Alaska Range. Blizzard conditions reported at:Zone 203 - Kuparuk.

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.

A low pressure center in the eastern Bering Sea sent a weather front north over the state causing strong winds in the central Alaska Range. As the front moved over the interior of Alaska winds increased along the Arctic Coast and low visibilities in blowing snow developed near Prudhoe Bay.Blizzard conditions reported at:Zone 203 - Kuparuk. Highest gust 33 knots (38 mph).High Winds reported at:Zone 204 - Barter Island AWOS gust near 52 knots (60 mph)Zone 226 - Fort Greeley MesoNet Site:Texas Condo highest gust 54 knots (62 mph).

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 Nov 26, 2:30 PM AST, 11 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 26, 2:30 PM AST, 11 hours 45 minutes before

NORTH ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
230 PM AST FRI NOV 26 2004

.DISCUSSION...THE TRANSITION BACK TO A MORE PROGRESSIVE WEATHER
PATTERN IS NOW UNDERWAY OVER NORTHERN ALASKA. THE 1ST IN A SERIES
OF LOW CENTERS THAT ARE FORECAST BY ALL THE COMPUTER MODELS TO
MOVE NE-WARD FROM THE BERING SEA OVER WESTERN MAINLAND ALASKA OVER
THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS IS NOW MOVING INTO THE EASTERN BERING SEA.
STRONG S-LY FLOW AHEAD OF THIS LOW CENTER IS NOW SPREADING N-WARD
OVER WESTERN ALASKA. CLOUDS AND SNOW IS NOW SPREADING N-WARD OVER
WESTERN ALASKA AS A UPPER-LEVEL SHORTWAVE AHEAD OF THE MAIN LOW
CENTER MOVES E-WARD OVER MAINLAND ALASKA. THE CLOUDS ARE EXPECTED
TO MOVE OVER THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN INTERIOR TONIGHT, BUT LITTLE,
IF ANY SNOW IS EXPECTED TO MAKE IT INTO THE EASTERN INTERIOR DUE
TO THE RAPID WEAKENING OF THE SHORTWAVE. STRONG WINDS AND BLOWING
SNOW IS EXPECTED TOP CONTINUE ALONG THE WESTERN ARCTIC COAST INTO
AND THROUGH THE WEEKEND AS THE LOW-LEVEL E-LY FLOW IS ENHANCED BY
DROPPING SURFACE PRESSURES OVER MAINLAND ALASKA.

A PERIOD OF STRONG S-LY WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP SATURDAY
NIGHT THROUGH ALASKA RANGE PASSES AS S-LY FLOW ALOFT BRIEFLY
STRENGTHENS AHEAD OF THE MAIN LOW CENTER THAT WILL BE MOVING
INLAND OVER SOUTHWEST ALASKA. A WEDGE OF ABOVE-FREEZING AREA IS
EXPECTED TO BE ADVECTED N-WARD OVER THE WESTERN INTERIOR SAT AND
SAT NIGHT. THIS WARMING ALOFT MAY BE ENOUGH TO CHANGE THE SNOW TO
FREEZING RAIN IN A FEW SPOTS BEFORE THE LOW CENTER PASSES TO THE
EAST AND COLDER AIR RETURNS BACK OVER THE REGION. THE DOWNSLOPE
EFFECTS OF THE ALASKA RANGE SHOULD KEEP PRECIP CHANGES QUITE LOW
OVER THE EASTERN INTERIOR ON SAT. SNOW IS THEN LIKELY TO SPREAD
E-WARD OVER THE EASTERN INTERIOR ON SAT NIGHT AND SUN AS LOW-LEVEL
WINDS BECOME W-LY. BEHIND THE LOW CENTER HOWEVER, A LACK OF
MOISTURE SHOULD KEEP SNOWFALL AMOUNTS ON LIGHT SIDE. HIGH PRESSURE
OVER THE HIGH ARCTIC IS EXPECTED TO KEEP STRONG E-LY WINDS,
CLOUDS, AND FLURRIES GOING OVER THE ARCTIC INTO AT LEAST THE
MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. AFTER A BRIEF BREAK SUN NIGHT, ANOTHER LOW
CENTER IS EXPECTED TO SPREAD CLOUDS, SNOW, AND WIND BACK E-WARD
OVER MAINLAND ALASKA ON MON AND TUE.

.AFG WATCH/WARNING/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...HIGH WIND WATCH SAT NIGHT 223/225/226. BLZ WARNING 201
(PALU-PPIZ) TONIGHT THROUGH THE WEEKEND.
MARINE...HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY WRNG 9A/9B/10B. SCA/BWA
9A/9B/10A/10A/11A.

MP NOV 04

Event by event

1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Ne. Slopes of the Ern Ak Rng

When: November 27, 2:15 AM AST to 4:45 PM AST
Where: Ne. Slopes of the Ern Ak Rng forecast zone
Measured: 54 kt (62 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 2004 Every state in 2004 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, November 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: 5428010.