Winter Storm in Alaska, April 1, 2008

Name: Winter Storm in Alaska, April 1, 2008
Start: 2008-04-01T00:00
End: 2008-04-01T10:00
Location: Alaska

April 1, 2008 · NWS AFG · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

|A 983 mb low pressure center moved north to the central Bering Sea on the 31st, and an associated occlusion moved over southwest Alaska with the low eventually weakening north of the Seward Peninsula on the afternoon of the 1st. This system brought heavy snow and freezing rain to the eastern and northern shores of Norton Sound the night of the 31st and morning of the 1st.

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 AFG wrote it up.

Event continued from March.|A 983 mb low pressure center moved north to the central Bering Sea on the 31st, and an associated occlusion moved over southwest Alaska with the low eventually weakening north of the Seward Peninsula on the afternoon of the 1st. This system brought heavy snow and freezing rain to the eastern and northern shores of Norton Sound the night of the 31st and morning of the 1st. |Zone 211 - on the 31st, 3.8 inches of snow fell at Nome. Rain started the evening of the 31st and ended early morning on the 1st with 0.21 inches...while air temperatures were at or above freezing, traveling surfaces were still below freezing resulting in ice-covered roads and streets. |Zone 212 - based on snowfall at Nome and the longer periods of reduced visibility at Koyuk, snowfall amounts in the hills over this zone likely exceeded 6 inches for this event. In addition St. Michael experienced some freezing rain, though below warning criteria.

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 Mar 31, 10:18 PM AKST, 1 hour 42 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 31, 10:18 PM AKST, 1 hour 42 minutes before

NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK
418 AM ADT TUE APR 1 2008

.DISCUSSION...
THE WEATHER PATTERN WILL CONTINUE TO REMAIN STORMY FOR THE
REMAINDER OF THE WEEK ALONG THE WEST COAST. A SERIES OF NORTH
PACIFIC STORM SYSTEMS WILL BRING SNOW...FREEZING RAIN...AND RAIN
AT TIMES TO THE WEST COAST AND ABOUT AS FAR EAST AS THE WESTERN
INTERIOR. A SYSTEM IN THE NORTHERN BRANCH MAY CAUSE THE UPPER FLOW
TO VEER MORE WEST TO SOUTHWEST BY WEDNESDAY NIGHT WHICH MAY SPREAD
PRECIPITATION INTO PARTS OF THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN INTERIOR.

ALOFT...THE MAIN STORM TRACK THIS WEEK WILL RESIDE FROM THE NORTH
PACIFIC AND INTO THE BERING SEA. THE MEAN TROUGH THAT HAS BEEN
RESIDING ACROSS EASTERN RUSSIA WILL SHIFT EAST TO NEAR THE BERING
STRAIT BY THE WEEKEND. EVENTUALLY THIS WILL SHIFT THE MAIN STORM
TRACK SOUTH OF THE STATE. BY LATE IN THE WEEKEND OR EARLY NEXT
WEEK THE MEAN TROUGH WILL LIKELY LAY ACROSS THE STATE WITH A
COLDER THAN AVERAGE AIRMASS RETURNING TO NORTHERN ALASKA.

SURFACE...A 987 MB LOW NEAR ST MATTHEW ISLAND AT 12Z WILL LIFT
NNE TO THE BERING STRAIT BY LATE IN THE DAY. THIS LOW WILL SLOWLY
LIFT UP INTO THE ARCTIC OCEAN NORTH OF CAPE LISBURNE BY WEDNESDAY
NIGHT. THE NEXT LOW WHICH IS CURRENTLY AT ABOUT 40N 150E IS
PROGGED TO PUSH TOWARD THE SOUTHERN ALEUTIANS WEDNESDAY MORNING
AND INTO THE SOUTHWEST PORTION OF THE CWA BY THURSDAY AFTERNOON.
ANOTHER SYSTEM MAY FOLLOW FOR THE WEEKEND...BUT THIS ONE MAY TRY
TO PASS SOUTH OF ALEUTIANS AND INTO THE GULF OR SOUTHERN ALASKA.

WEST COAST...THE MOST SIGNIFICANT PRECIPITATION THE REMAINDER OF THE
WEEK WILL BE ALONG THE WEST COAST.  A DRY SLOT IS SEEN ON SATELLITE
TRYING TO WORK UP INTO SOUTHWEST ALASKA THIS MORNING WHICH SHOULD
PUT AN END TO ANY SIGNIFICANT PRECIPITATION TO THE SOUTH OF THE
SEWARD PENINSULA THIS MORNING. A MIX OF SNOW...FREEZING
RAIN...AND RAIN WILL FALL TO THE NORTH OF THE DRY SLOT. IT LOOKS
LIKE MOST AREAS ABOVE 1000-1500 FT WILL HAVE MOSTLY SNOW...BUT
BELOW 1000 FT JUST ABOUT ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE. HAVE MAINTAINED
MOST OF THE ONGOING WARNINGS AND HAVE ADDED WINTER WEATHER
ADVISORIES FOR A FEW OF THE MORE INTERIOR ZONES. THE NEXT SYSTEM
WILL PUSH ANOTHER ROUND OF PRECIPITATION INTO THE SOUTHWEST ZONES
ON THURSDAY. IT LOOKS LIKE JUST ENOUGH COLD AIR WILL COME DOWN TO
MAKE THIS NEXT EVENT MAINLY SNOW...WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR
SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATIONS.

INTERIOR...THE UPPER FLOW ON THE 00Z SOUNDING AT FAIRBANKS WAS OUT
OF THE WEST...BUT AS THE SYSTEM WORKS UP ALONG THE WEST COAST THE
UPPER FLOW WILL GRADUALLY BACK INTO THE S-SW TODAY. THIS WILL PUT
MOST OF THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN INTERIOR IN THE PRECIPITATION
SHADOW FROM THE ALASKA RANGE. ANTLER CREEK AND TEXAS CONDO HAVE
BEEN BLOWING 50-60 MPH ALL NIGHT AND AS THE FLOW BACKS MORE INTO
THE SOUTH THE WIND WILL LIKELY CONTINUE TO HOWL THROUGH THE
PASSES INTO TONIGHT. AS THE GRADIENT SLACKENS A BIT LATE TONIGHT
THE WIND MAY DIMINISH A BIT...BUT FOR NOW WILL KEEP THE ADVISORY
GOING THROUGH TONIGHT. IT ALSO LOOKS LIKE SNOW AND FREEZING RAIN
WILL AFFECT PARTS OF THE WESTERN INTERIOR AND HAVE HOISTED WINTER
WEATHER ADVISORIES FOR PORTIONS OF ZONES 218...219...AND 221.

NORTH SLOPE...CONTINUED MILD FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS AS THE FLOW
REMAINS OUT OF THE SOUTH. THE BEST CHANCE OF SNOW AS THE LOW
PUSHES UP THROUGH THE BERING STRAIT WILL BE WEST OF BARROW. CB

&&

.AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WIND ADVISORY FOR AKZ225-AKZ226.

WINTER STORM WARNING FOR AKZ207-AKZ208-AKZ210-AKZ211-AKZ212-
AKZ213-AKZ214.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR AKZ215-AKZ216-AKZ217-AKZ218-AKZ219-
AKZ221.

BRISK WIND ADVISORY FOR PKZ200-PKZ210.
&&

CB APR 08

Event by event

2 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Ern Norton Sound Nulato Hills

When: April 1, 12:00 AM AKST to 10:00 AM AKST
Where: Ern Norton Sound Nulato Hills forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS

Winter Storm, Srn Seward Peninsula Coast

When: April 1, 12:00 AM AKST to 4:45 AM AKST
Where: Srn Seward Peninsula Coast forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

What these are

Winter Storm: A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Alaska in 2008 Every state in 2008 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, April 2008

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: 81363, 85536.