Blizzard and High Wind in Alaska, January 29 to 31, 2007

Name: Blizzard and High Wind in Alaska, January 29 to 31, 2007
Start: 2007-01-29T10:30
End: 2007-01-31T16:00
Location: Alaska

January 29 to 31, 2007 · NWS AFC · 7 events in 6 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $125,000
Crop damage: None recorded
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 AFC wrote it up.

An intense north Pacific storm moved to the central Aleutians with a secondary storm center south of the Alaska Peninsula. High Wind swept through southwest and south central Alaska and along the central Aleutians and Alaska Peninsula. Snow over the central Aleutians combined with the wind resulted in a Blizzard for that region. Wide spread power outages plagued the Kuskokwim Delat with this storm along with roofs being blown off two houses, two housed shifted on their foundation and minor tidal overflow along Kuskokwim Bay. Unconfirmed wind gusts were reported to 127 mph at Sand Point on the Alaska Peninsula with this storm.

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 28, 11:15 PM AKST, 11 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 28, 11:15 PM AKST, 11 hours 15 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
SOUTHCENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ALASKA
415 AM AST MON JAN 29 2007

.DISCUSSION...

MODELS ARE IN GOOD AGREEMENT THIS MORNING. THE SAME PATTERN WILL
CONTINUE THROUGH THE WEEK WITH THE PINEAPPLE EXPRESS SENDING MORE
SYSTEMS NORTHWARD TO THE ALEUTIANS AND BERING. THE MAIN DIFFERENCE
WILL BE THAT THEY WILL MOVE A LITTLE FARTHER WEST THAN THE TWO
PREVIOUS LOWS. THE BLOCKING RIDGE SET UP OVER BRITISH COLUMBIA IS
CAUSING THIS CHANGE. THIS MEANS SOUTHCENTRAL WILL AVOID MOST OF THE
PRECIP. HOWEVER IT ALSO MEANS THAT THE PRESSURE GRADIENT WILL TIGHTEN
BETWEEN THE LOWS AND THE RIDGE.

IN THE WEST..FOR TODAY RAIN WILL SPREAD OVER THE AREA AS THE LOW
MOVES OVER THE EASTERN ALEUTIANS AND INTO THE BERING. THE GRADIENT
WILL BEGIN TO TIGHTEN AFTER THE INITIAL FRONTAL PASSAGE CAUSING
WARNING LEVEL WINDS TO 90 MPH TO DEVELOP ACROSS THE AK PENN THIS
EVENING AND EVENTUALLY INTO THE WESTERN CAPES OF BRISTOL BAY. WAA
WILL CONTINUE FROM THE EASTERN ALEUTIANS EASTWARD WITH COLDER
NORTHERLIES ON THE BACKSIDE OF THE LOW. LOOK FOR THE BLUSTERY WINDS
TO TAKE BRIEF BREAKS BUT RETURN PERIODICALLY THROUGH SATURDAY AS
SYSTEMS CONTINUE TO MOVE NORTH.

IN THE EAST..WAA WILL MOVE FARTHER INLAND TODAY. MOST OF THE PRECIP
FROM THE CURRENT FRONTAL SYSTEM ANTICIPATED TO AFFECT THE NORTH GULF
COAST TODAY WILL FALL IN THE FORM OF RAIN. PRECIP WILL BEGIN AS SNOW
IN THE NORTHERN SUSITNA AND NORTHERN COPPER RIVER VALLEY BUT WILL MIX
WITH RAIN IN THE SUSITNA VALLEY. MOST OF THE PRECIP ACROSS THE
ANCHORAGE BOWL WILL BE DOWNSLOPED OUT WITH WARNING LEVEL WINDS ACROSS
TURNAGAIN ARM AND HIGHER ELEVATIONS. STRONG GUSTS ARE ALSO EXPECTED
ON THE EAST SIDE OF TOWN. HOWEVER IN THE EVENING THERE IS THE
POTENTIAL FOR SOME FREEZING RAIN FARTHER NORTH NEAR EKLUTNA WHERE THE
WINDS WILL NOT BE AS STRONG. THIS WILL MOST LIKELY BE BRIEF BEFORE
CHANGING OVER TO RAIN.

.AER/ALU...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY
PUBLIC...FLOOD WARNING 121.
         HIGH WIND WARNING 101 181.
         HIGH WIND WATCH 161.
MARINE...STORM WARNING 120 130 138 155 160 165.
         GALE WARNING 125 132 150 170 171 172 176 179 180 185.
         HVY FZG SPRY 185.
FIRE WEATHER...NONE.

RNW JAN 07

Event by event

6 high wind, 1 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.

Blizzard, Central Aleutians

When: January 29, 10:30 AM AKST to 5:00 PM AKST
Where: Central Aleutians forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

High Wind, Anchorage Muni to Bird Creek

When: January 29, 7:00 PM AKST to 9:15 PM AKST
Where: Anchorage Muni to Bird Creek forecast zone
Measured: 73 kt (84 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

High Wind, Eastern Aleutians

When: January 30, 2:00 AM AKST to 3:00 AM AKST
Where: Eastern Aleutians forecast zone
Measured: 63 kt (72 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

High Wind, Bristol Bay

When: January 30, 12:00 PM AKST to January 31, 4:00 PM AKST
Where: Bristol Bay forecast zone
Measured: 83 kt (96 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

High Wind, Alaska Peninsula

When: January 30, 1:00 PM AKST to 9:00 PM AKST
Where: Alaska Peninsula forecast zone
Measured: 73 kt (84 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $25,000
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

High Wind, Kuskokwim Delta

When: January 30, 2:00 PM AKST to January 31, 3:00 AM AKST
Where: Kuskokwim Delta forecast zone
Measured: 68 kt (78 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

High Wind, Eastern Aleutians

When: January 31, 2:00 AM AKST to 5:00 AM AKST
Where: Eastern Aleutians forecast zone
Measured: 64 kt (74 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

What these are

Blizzard: Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or more with falling or blowing snow that cuts visibility below a quarter mile for three hours or longer.
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 2007 Every state in 2007 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, January 2007

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: 6561, 6563, 6562, 7156, 7157, 7158, 7159.