Alaska, 2005

High Wind in Alaska, March 20 to 21, 2005

March 20 to 21, 2005 · NWS AFC · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Strong high pressure building over northern and eastern Alaska combined with low pressure in the northern Gulf of Alaska resulted in strong gap outflow wind in northern Prince William Sound. The north wind peaked at 82 mph at the Valdez Airport at 940 am.

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 AFC wrote it up.

Strong high pressure building over northern and eastern Alaska combined with low pressure in the northern Gulf of Alaska resulted in strong gap outflow wind in northern Prince William Sound. The north wind peaked at 82 mph at the Valdez Airport at 940 am.

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 Anchorage, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 19, 5:00 PM AST, 15 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 19, 5:00 PM AST, 15 hours 30 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
SOUTHCENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ALASKA
500 PM AST SAT MAR 19 2005

.DISCUSSION...
ABBREVIATED DUE TO WARNINGS. TRICKY FORECASTS AS TO WHERE AND WHEN
FOR THE STRONG WIND IN THE AER DOMAIN. WITH DOWNWARD OMEGA AND SOME
UPPER SUPPORT WE DECIDED TO ISSUE WARNINGS FOR TWO GAP WINDS - COPPER
DELTA AND NEAR THOMPSON PASS. OTHERWISE THE WIND LOOKS TO BE GARDEN
VARIETY ADVISORIES WITH LOTS OF LOCAL EFFECTS. 12Z MESO-ETA USED. NOT
MUCH DOING OUT WEST AS THE FRONT DIES IN THE WESTERN ALEUTIANS. THE
BIG STORY THERE IS LOW LEVEL OFF SHORE FLOW FOR MOST OF SW ALASKA AND

DRY AIR MOVING OUT INTO MUCH OF THE BERING SEA.

.AER/ALU...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY
PUBLIC...HIGH WIND WARNING 131 135.
         WIND ADVISORY 101 111 125 141 145 181 185 191.
MARINE...GALES 121 125 130 140 150 176.
FIRE WEATHER...NONE.

JC MAR 05

Event by event

1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Nern P.W. Snd

When
March 20, 8:30 AM AST to March 21, 11:22 AM AST
Where
Nern P.W. Snd forecast zone
Measured
71 kt (82 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

More

Every storm in Alaska in 2005Every state in 2005This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, March 2005

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: 5437049.