High Wind in Alaska, April 17 to 18, 2006

Name: High Wind in Alaska, April 17 to 18, 2006
Start: 2006-04-17T19:45
End: 2006-04-18T03:00
Location: Alaska

April 17 to 18, 2006 · NWS AJK · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

A deep winter storm around 975 MB near St. Paul Island drifted to near King Salmon, had a weather front moving across the gulf of Alaska.

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 AJK wrote it up.

A deep winter storm around 975 MB near St. Paul Island drifted to near King Salmon, had a weather front moving across the gulf of Alaska. The front moved through the southwest portion of the panhandle during the evening hours bringing a period of 2 to 6 hours of gusty southeast winds. The Hydaburg AWOS reported a peak wind of 61kt (70 mph) around a 1945. Ketchikan reported a top wind of 55 kt (63 mph) on the roof of the Flight Service building.

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 Apr 17, 10:00 AM AST, 9 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 17, 10:00 AM AST, 9 hours 45 minutes before

SOUTHEAST ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
1100 AM ADT MON APR 17 2006

.SHORT RANGE...THERE IS A STG 300MB LOW OVR THE AK PEN THIS (MON)
MRNG THAT WL WKN AND DRFT OVR THE CNTRL GLF AK THRU WED MRNG.
THERE IS AN UPR JET ARND THE SRN HLF OF THE UPR LOW THAT WL PUSH
ACRS SE AK THRU 12Z TUE.  A S/W UPR TROF WL ROT ARND THE MAIN LOW
AND PUSH NEWD ACRS THE SRN PHNDL LATE TUE.

SAT PIC SHOWS A LOW INVOF OF THE AK PEN THIS MRNG THAT IS DRFTG
EWD TWRDS THE GLF AK.  THE SGFNT WX SYS FOR THIS AREAS IS A STG
OCFNT WRAPPED ACRS THE NRN GLF CST AND CONTG SWD OVR THE ERN GLF
AK.  THERE IS A TRPL PT OFSHR SRN BC CST AND MDLS SGST THAT IT IS
FAIRLY ACTV W/ THE PSBLTY THERE MAY BE AN ASSOCD CLSD CNTR.  THE
SSWLY 500MB JET ACRS THE ERN GLF AK WL RMN OVR SE AK THRU LATE
TUE NGT.  THEREFORE DO NOT XPCT THE OCFNT TO MOV THRU SRN SE AK
UNTIL AT LEAST TUE MRNG.

ATTM THERE IS LTL/NO INDCTN OF A WV THAT MDLS SGST WL DVLP ON THE
FNTL SYS OVR THE N PAC BGNG TDY...BUT IT IS PROB TOO EARLY.  MDLS
SGST A DVLPMNT THAT WL ROT NEWD...PROB MOVG INVOF DXN ENT...THRU
TUE NGT.  THIS SYS SHLD SPRD PCPN AND SOME INCR WNDS OVR THE SRN
PHNDL THRU TUE NGT.

.LONG RANGE...A WEAK WAVE WILL PUSH ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PANHANDLE
WEDNESDAY. THE BAROCLINIC ZONE STRETCHED ACROSS THE PANHANDLE
BEGINS SHIFTING EAST AND WEAKENING OVERNIGHT WED. IT WILL WEAKEN
AND HANG UP OVER THE SOUTHERN PANHANDLE ON THU...EVENTUALLY
EXITING THE AREA BY THU AFTERNOON. GENERAL DRYING ACROSS THE
NORTHERN PANHANDLE WILL SPREAD NORTHEAST TO SOUTHWEST IN
ASSOCIATION WITH A RIDGE WILL BUILDING INTO SOUTHEAST THROUGH
THURSDAY NIGHT. HOWEVER...SCATTERED SHOWERS WILL REMAIN IN THE
WAKE OF THIS SYSTEM.

A 990 MB LOW WILL FORM OVER THE AK PENINSULA THURSDAY NIGHT. THE
ASSOCIATED FRONT WILL PUSH EAST TO THE PAYA AREA FRIDAY NIGHT.
LATEST LONG RANGE MODEL RUNS ARE IN GENERAL AGREEMENT REGARDING
THIS SYSTEM. THE LATEST 12Z GFS RUN SLOWS THE PROGRESSION OF THE
FRONT BY ABOUT 6 HOURS...STALLING IT OVER THE CENTRAL/EASTERN
GULF. THIS FOLLOWS THE ECMWFS DEPICTION OF STRONGER RIDGING AHEAD
OF THE LOW.  BY EARLY SATURDAY THE FRONTAL BAND WILL SPREAD WEST
TO EAST ACROSS THE REST OF THE PANHANDLE. THIS CYCLONE IS
EXPECTED TO TAP INTO MOISTURE NEAR 35N LATITUDE BRINGING A
SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF MOISTURE AND MILDER TEMPERATURES.  GFS
DEPICTS QPF VALUES AS HIGH AS 1.15 INCHES/6 HOURS ALONG THE
NORTHERN COAST SATURDAY BUT WILL KEEP VALUES LESS STEEP.

THE FRONT STALLS OVER SOUTHEAST AND EVENTUALLY WEAKENS
SUNDAY...HOWEVER A DEVELOPING WAVE ALONG THE MAIN UPPER LEVEL
TROF SITUATED OVER THE CENTRAL GULF WILL BRING ANOTHER ROUND OF
MOISTURE SUNDAY AS IT QUICKLY MOVES NORTH TOWARDS THE SOUTHERN
PANHANDLE THEN UP THE COAST INTO THE NORTHERN GULF SUNDAY NIGHT.

.AJK...WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
PUBLIC...WND ADV ZN17-18 AND 22-23 THRU AFTN
         WND ADV ZN 26-29 AFTN AND EVENG.
MARINE...GALES ERN GLF CST AND CSTL WTRS THRU AFTN.
         GALES NRN INSIDE WTRS THRU AFTN.
         GALES SRN INSIDE WTRS MON AFTN/EVENG.

Event by event

2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Dixon Entrance to Cape Decision Coastal Area

When: April 17, 7:45 PM AST to 11:00 PM AST
Where: Dixon Entrance to Cape Decision Coastal Area forecast zone
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

High Wind, Southern Inner Channels

When: April 17, 7:45 PM AST to April 18, 3:00 AM AST
Where: Southern Inner Channels forecast zone
Measured: 55 kt (63 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 2006 Every state in 2006 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, April 2006

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: 5495454, 5495455.