Heavy Rain in Alaska, July 5 to 6, 2006

Name: Heavy Rain in Alaska, July 5 to 6, 2006
Start: 2006-07-05T16:00
End: 2006-07-06T07:00
Location: Alaska

July 5 to 6, 2006 · NWS AFG · 1 event in 1 county or zone

In addition to scattered wet thunderstorm the afternoon of the 5th, a series of thunderstorms moved over the southwestern Middle Tanana Valley the evening of the 5th. with most of the precipitation falling from the later evening thunderstorms between 2200 AST on the 5th and 0200 AST on the 6th.

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.

In addition to scattered wet thunderstorm the afternoon of the 5th, a series of thunderstorms moved over the southwestern Middle Tanana Valley the evening of the 5th. Rainfall amounts totaled 1.00 inches to near 1.50 inches for the event...with most of the precipitation falling from the later evening thunderstorms between 2200 AST on the 5th and 0200 AST on the 6th. Local minor flooding of various streets and roads occurred, and College Road near Creamer's Field was partially closed on the 6th due to a sinkhole forming near a newly installed culvert.

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 Jul 5, 1:17 PM AST, 2 hours 43 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 5, 1:17 PM AST, 2 hours 43 minutes before

NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK
217 PM ADT WED JUL 5 2006

.DISCUSSION...
RIDGE HIGH PRESSURE ALOFT EXTENDS FROM SOUTHWEST ALASKA MAINLAND
NORTHWESTWARD ACROSS NORTHERN BERING SEA AND THEN INTO CHUKOTKA
HOLDING STEADY. LOW ALOFT OVER BANKS ISLAND MOVING EASTWARD WHILE
TROUGH ALOFT SWINGS SOUTH ACROSS THE CWA.

AT THE SURFACE...1034 HIGH NORTH OF WRANGEL ISLAND WILL PERSIST
INTO THE WEEKEND. 1016 MB LOW SE WRANGEL ISLAND POORLY
MODELED..HAS WELL DEVELOPED THOUGH PRESENTLY OVER THE WESTERN
CHUKCHI SEA...AND EVEN EMBEDDED THUNDER BEING DETECTED BY LIGHTNING
DETECTION NETWORK. WEAK COLD FRONT HUNG UP IN THE BROOKS RANGE
WILL BE LARGELY DIFFUSE AS IT DRIFTS SOUTH. 1017 MB THERMAL LOW
CENTERED NEAR TANANA WITH TROUGH SOUTHEASTWARD INTO THE TANANA
VALLEY. COMBINATION OF FALLING PRESSURES OVER THE INTERIOR AND
SLIGHTLY RISING PRESSURES BROOKS RANGE NORTHWARD WILL COMBINE TO
PRODUCE MODERATE PRESSURE GRADIENT NORTH OF 67N STARTING THU.

FOR THE NORTH SLOPE...STRONG CLEARING TODAY WAINWRIGHT-NORTH OF
ARCTIC VILLAGE LINE...BUT SLUG OF ST/F NOW SHOWING UP OFFSHORE
DEADHORSE EASTWARD...AND MAKING SOME PROGRESS SOUTHWARD. LOW OVER
THE WESTERN CHUKCHI SEA WILL KEEP SOME RAIN OVER THE WESTERN ZONES
TONIGHT.

FOR THE WEST COAST...ONLY A LITTLE ST/F LINGERING IN EASTERN
NORTON SOUND THIS AFTERNOON. NORTH OF THE BERING STRAIT..WESTERN
CHUKCHI SEA LOW AND TROUGH WILL BRING SOME PRECIP...AND BASED ON
LIGHTNING DATA WILL INCLUDE ISOLATED THUNDER IN ZONE 207 THIS
EVENING.

FOR THE INTERIOR...SCATTERED CONVECTION THIS EVENING ALONG AND
SOUTH OF THERMAL LOW/TROUGH AS DEEP MOISTURE ABLE TO OVERCOME THE
FAIRLY WARM AIR ALOFT. FARTHER NORTH A FEW SHOWERS BUT LESS
MOISTURE AVAILABLE. WINDS COMING UP OVER THE NORTHERN INTERIOR
THURSDAY AS PRESSURE GRADIENT INCREASING. TROUGH ALOFT DROPPING
SOUTH OF BROOKS RANGE WILL HELP SPARK SOME SHOWERS IN THE NORTH
THURSDAY EVEN AS SOUTH BECOMES MORE STABLE.

&&

.FIRE WEATHER...
INCREASING PRESSURE GRADIENT ALONG THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE BROOKS
RANGE WILL ALLOW WINDS TO INCREASE ENOUGH BY WEDNESDAY FOR FIRE
WEATHER WATCHES FOR WEDNESDAY ZONES 217 EASTWARD TO 220. THIS WILL
LIKELY BE UPGRADED TO RFW WITH AFTERNOON PACKAGE. THE GRADIENT
SHOULD REMAIN UP THRU THURSDAY...SO RFW MAY BE NEED THEN TOO.

&&

.HYDROLOGY...
CONSISTENTLY HIGHER FREEZING LEVELS WILL TRANSLATE INTO SLOWLY RISING
LEVELS ON GLACIER FEED RIVERS...OTHERWISE LITTLE HYDRO ACTION.

&&

.AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
FIRE WEATHER WATCH FOR AKZ217-AKZ218-AKZ220.

SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR PKZ220-PKZ225.

BRISK WIND ADVISORY FOR PKZ230.
&&

RT JUL 06

Event by event

1 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Rain, Middle Tanana Valley

When: July 5, 4:00 PM AST to July 6, 7:00 AM AST
Where: Middle Tanana Valley County, Ester
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

What these are

Heavy Rain: Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.

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, July 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: 5517130.