High Wind in Alaska, October 9, 2005

Name: High Wind in Alaska, October 9, 2005
Start: 2005-10-09T08:00
End: 2005-10-09T23:00
Location: Alaska

October 9, 2005 · NWS AJK · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $50,000
Crop damage: $5,000
Events: 7

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 AJK wrote it up.

A 967 MB Low and associated front tracked northeast from the Eastern Gulf and through the Northern Panhandle. Widespread high winds occurred but the only damage of note was reported in the Juneau area where winds topped out at 69 mph. Damage primarily consisted of uprooted trees falling on structures. Numerous power outages also occurred. No injuries were reported.

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 Juneau, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Oct 9, 5:30 AM AST, 2 hours 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Oct 9, 5:30 AM AST, 2 hours 30 minutes before

SOUTHEAST ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
630 AM ADT SUN OCT 9 2005

.SYNOPSIS...
.SHORT RANGE...STORM NOW NEAR 53/141 AROUND 972 MB WILL MOVE NNE
TO NEAR CAPE FAIRWEATHER BY EARLY EVENING. THE LOW WILL THEN
SPLIT WITH ONE WEAKER PIECE TURNING NW THEN W THRU THE FAR NRN
GULF...AND SECOND LOW FORMING OVER THE SRN YUKON AND MOVING ENE
WITH MAIN UPPER SUPPORT. A WEAK TROF WILL MOVE INTO THE AREA BY
LATE MON.

MAIN ISSUE IS THE WIND WITH THIS SYSTEM. DECIDED TO KEEP THE
CURRENT WARNING AREA AS IS WITH ONLY MINOR TWEAKS TO THE VALID
TIMES. BASICALLY...THE HIGH WINDS SHOULD START ALONG THE CENTRAL
AND SRN COAST BY LATE MORNING AHEAD OF OCCLUSION...THEN REACH SRN
AND CENTRAL INNER CHANNELS BY EARLY THIS AFTERNOON. THEN...SECOND
WRAP OF OCCLUDED FRONT WILL POUND THE CENTRAL COAST AND CENTRAL
INNER CHANNELS LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...SO WARNING WILL
REMAIN UP LONGER IN THOSE AREAS. WENT WITH WIND ADVYS FOR ALL
REMAINING AREAS EXCEPT PAYA AND PAGY ZONES...WITH SIMILAR TIMING
TO THE SURROUNDING WARNINGS. WINDS SHOULD DROP OFF LATE TONIGHT
AND EARLY MON MORNING...LAST OVER THE FAR NRN AREA.

FOR THE MARINE AREAS...STORMS WILL BE RULE OVER CENTRAL AND SRN
OUTER AREAS EXCEPT A SMALL AREA OF HURCN FORCE WINDS IS LIKELY
WITH THE SECOND WRAP IN PKZ042. NW OUTER WATERS WILL REACH GALE
FORCE TODAY. INNER CHANNELS WILL BE MAINLY 35 TO 45 KT WITH SOME
STORMS POSSIBLE IN CROSS SOUND.

DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE A HYDRO ISSUE WITH THIS SYSTEM AS STREAMS
HAVE DROPPED TO NEAR BASEFLOW CONDITIONS...AND NOT EXPECTING
EXTREME AMOUNTS OF RAIN WITH THIS SYSTEM. PRECIP SHOULD BECOME
SHOWERY FROM S TO N TONIGHT AND MON MORNING. MODELS SHOW DECENT
AMOUNT OF INSTABILITY BUT LACK OF ANY SIGNIFICANT VORT CENTER IN
THE UNSTABLE AIRMASS WILL LIKELY PRECLUDE AND THUNDERSTORM
DEVELOPMENT. STILL...SOME OF THE SHOWERS COULD BE LOCALLY HEAVY.

.LONG RANGE...MODELS ARE IN CLOSE AGREEMENT THROUGH DAY 5 THEN
DISAGREE STRONGLY IN DAYS 6 AND 7 ON FORECAST OF BIG LOW DEVELOPING
OVER THE EASTERN PACIFIC ON FRIDAY AND THEN TRAVELING TOWARD THE
QUEEN CHARLOTTE ISLANDS SATURDAY.

DAY 3 THROUGH DAY 5 SHOWS A  MODERATE LOW OVER THE WESTERN GULF OF
MONDAY NIGHT MOVING TO THE CENTRAL GULF OF ALASKA TUESDAY WITH THE
ASSOCIATED WEATHER FRONT MOVING THROUGH SOUTHEAST ALASKA DURING
TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND TUESDAY NIGHT PRODUCING RAIN AND GALE FORCE
WINDS. AS THE LOW IN THE CENTRAL GULF OF ALASKA MOVES INLAND WEST
OF YAKUTAT...A SECONDARY FROM STEMMING FROM THAT LOW WILL BE MOVING
THROUGH THE REGION DURING WEDNESDAY. OCCASIONAL RAIN ALONG WITH
DIMINISHING WINDS THROUGH WEDNESDAY.

HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING OVER THE CENTRAL GULF OF ALASKA THURSDAY
NIGHT WILL FORCE THE NEXT LOW OVER VANCOUVER ISLAND AND BRITISH
COLUMBIA FRIDAY. SCATTERED SHOWERS ENDING FROM THE SOUTH OVER
SOUTHERN SOUTHEAST ALASKA FRIDAY NIGHT.

ON THE BIG STORM MOVING FROM THE EASTERN PACIFIC TOWARD THE
QUEEN CHARLOTTE ISLANDS...ELECTED TO GO MORE WITH THE GFS MODEL
WHICH FORECASTS A MORE SOUTHERLY TRACK FOR THE LOW CURVING THE
SYSTEM NORTHEAST TOWARD CAPE DECISION SATURDAY NIGHT. THE EUROPEAN
MODEL AGREES WITH THE SOLUTION. THIS WILL SPREAD RAIN BACK INTO
SOUTHERN SOUTHEAST ALASKA SATURDAY WHILE THE REMAINDER OF SOUTHEAST
ALASKA AND THE EASTERN GULF COAST SEE PRECIPITATION COME TO AN END
SATURDAY.

.AJK...WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
PUBLIC...HIGH WIND WARNING...ZONES 21>28 ...WIND ADVISORY...ZONES
19-20-29
MARINE...HURCN FORCE WIND WARNING...PKZ042
...STORM...PKZ022-041-043-310
...GALES...PKZ011>013-021-031>036-051-052

Event by event

7 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Dixon Entrance to Cape Decision Coastal Area

When: October 9, 8:00 AM AST to 1:00 PM AST
Where: Dixon Entrance to Cape Decision Coastal Area forecast zone
Measured: 53 kt (61 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Southern Inner Channels

When: October 9, 10:00 AM AST to 1:00 PM AST
Where: Southern Inner Channels forecast zone
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Inner Channels From Kupreanof Island to Etolin Island

When: October 9, 11:00 AM AST to 1:00 PM AST
Where: Inner Channels From Kupreanof Island to Etolin Island forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Eastern Chichagof Island

When: October 9, 12:00 PM AST to 2:00 PM AST
Where: Eastern Chichagof Island forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Cape Decision to Salisbury Sound Coastal Area

When: October 9, 4:00 PM AST to 6:00 PM AST
Where: Cape Decision to Salisbury Sound Coastal Area forecast zone
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Eastern Baranof Island and Southern Admiralty Island

When: October 9, 6:00 PM AST to 8:00 PM AST
Where: Eastern Baranof Island and Southern Admiralty Island forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Juneau Borough and Northern Admiralty Island

When: October 9, 6:00 PM AST to 11:00 PM AST
Where: Juneau Borough and Northern Admiralty Island forecast zone
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $50,000
Crop damage: $5,000
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 2005 Every state in 2005 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, October 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: 5481414, 5481415, 5481413, 5481409, 5481410, 5481411, 5481412.