High Wind in Alaska, January 22 to 23, 2006

Name: High Wind in Alaska, January 22 to 23, 2006
Start: 2006-01-22T20:20
End: 2006-01-23T07:45
Location: Alaska

January 22 to 23, 2006 · NWS AFC · 1 event in 1 county or zone

An intense 959 MB low moved to the western Aleutians Sunday and Monday. the strong gradient in advance of the associated front produced the typical strong wind across the western Aleutians at Shemya.

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.

An intense 959 MB low moved to the western Aleutians Sunday and Monday. the strong gradient in advance of the associated front produced the typical strong wind across the western Aleutians at Shemya.

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 Jan 22, 2:00 PM AST, 6 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 22, 2:00 PM AST, 6 hours 20 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
SOUTHCENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ALASKA
200 PM AST SUN JAN 22 2006

.DISCUSSION...MODELS IN GOOD AGREEMENT AND HAVE REASONABLE FORECAST
TRENDS IN THE EASTERN DOMAIN. MODELS DIFFER SOMEWHAT ON HANDLING OF
SERIES OF INTENSE LOWS NEAR THE WESTERN ALEUTIANS. GFS WILL BE USED
IN FORECAST PACKAGES.

.EAST...LOW CENTER WHICH BROUGHT SNOW TO MUCH OF SOUTHCENTRAL/NORTH
GULF OVERNIGHT HAS NOW MOVED TO NEAR MONTAGUE ISLAND AND IS
WEAKENING. EXPECT CENTER TO MOVE TO THE SOUTHEAST GULF OF ALASKA MON
NIGHT. STRONG COLD ADVECTION OVER THE SOUTHERN INLET AND INTO
KACHEMAK BAY IS PRODUCING BRISK WINDS AND LAKE EFFECT SNOWS OVER
KACHEMAK BAY. BLIZZARD CONDITIONS IN BLOWING SNOW OVER KACHEMAK BAY
WILL SUBSIDE THIS EVENING AS WINDS DIMINISH. SNOW OVER REMAINDER OF
SOUTHCENTRAL WILL TAPER OFF TONIGHT WITH PASSAGE OF UPPER CENTER.
STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS OVER THE WESTERN GULF WILL CONTINUE INTO MON
MORNING. N/S DEVELOPING PRESSURE GRADIENT ALONG THE NORTH GULF COAST
WILL PRODUCE STRONG OUTFLOW WINDS MON AND TUES.

.WEST...RIDGE BUILDS OVER THE EASTERN BERING SEA...AK PEN...AND SW
ALASKA TUE MORNING. SERIES OF INTENSE LOWS MOVE NEAR THE WESTERN
ALEUTIANS AND SPREAD ALTERNATE PERIODS OF STRONG SOUTHEAST WINDS OVER
THE REGION. EASTERN MOST CENTER MOVES OVER SHEMYA TUE MORNING.
ASSOCIATED FRONTAL TROUGH SPREADS STRONG SE WINDS TO EASTERN
ALEUTIANS AND PRIBILOFS.

.AER/ALU...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY
PUBLIC...BLIZZARD WARNING ZONE 121. HIGH WIND WARNING ZONE 191.
         NUMEROUS ADVISORIES.
MARINE...NUMEROUS HEAVY FREEZING SPRAYS...STORMS...AND GALES. SEE
LATEST PACKAGES FOR DETAILS.

RMC JAN 06

Event by event

1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Western Aleutians

When: January 22, 8:20 PM AST to January 23, 7:45 AM AST
Where: Western Aleutians forecast zone
Measured: 67 kt (77 mph) estimated 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, January 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: 5483102.