Blizzard and Heavy Snow in Alaska, February 26 to 28, 2009

A 976 mb low near the northern Kamchatka Peninsula on the afternoon of the 26th tracked across the Chukotsk Peninsula during the afternoon of the 27th, and into the southern Chukchi Sea on the evening the 27th as a 983 mb low. The low then tracked northeast across the Arctic Ocean on the 28th. The storm brought blizzard conditions to much of the west coast as well as the arctic coasts of Alaska.

Zone 201: Blizzard conditions were observed from the early morning hours on the 28th through midnight. The visibility was frequently reduced to one quarter mile or less at Point Lay in snow and blowing snow. The Point Lay AWOS had a peak wind gust of 54 mph/47kt. similar conditions were also observed at Atqasuk and Wainwright. The Atqasuk AWSS had a peak wind gust to 53 mph/46kt, and the Wainwright ASOS measured a peak wind gust of 52 mph/45kt.

Zone 202: Blizzard conditions were observed at Barrow during the afternoon and evening hours on the 28th. The blizzard conditions continued into the morning of the 1st. The visibility was frequently reduced to one quarter of a mile and the Barrow ASOS had a peak wind gust of 48 mph/42kt.

Zone 203: Blizzard conditions were observed at Nuiqsut during the morning and early afternoon hours on the 26th. The visibility was frequently reduced to one quarter mile in heavy snow and blowing snow. The Nuiqsut ASOS reported sustained winds of around 25 mph with gusts to 37 mph/32kt.

Zone 204: Blizzard conditions were observed at Barter Island during the early morning hours on the 26th. The visibility was reduced to zero at times in heavy blowing snow at Barter Island during the early morning hours of the 26th. The Barter Island AWOS had sustained winds as high as 61 mph/53kt with gusts as high as 68 mph/59kt.

Zone 205: Blizzard conditions likely occurred from about noon on the 27th through midnight on the 28th. This is based on conditions observed in passes of the northeastern Brooks Range (Anaktuvuk Pass) as well as the Kelly RAWS (KELA2) in zone 208. The Ikpikpuk automated stream gage (IKPA2) in zone 205 also reported sustained winds of up to 43 mph/37kt.

Zone 206: Based on State of Alaska Department of Transportation (DOT) reports, blizzard conditions likely occurred at Atigun Pass on the 26th. The winds were reported as being in excess of 40 mph, and the visibility was reported as being near zero at times in blowing and drifting snow. The blizzard conditions re-developed again early on the morning of the 28th and continued until late afternoon. The DOT reported winds of 20 to 40 mph at Atigun pass with near zero visibility in blowing and drifting snow.

Zone 207: Blizzard conditions were observed along the Chukchi Sea coast from the morning hours on the 27th through the afternoon hours on the 28th. At Point Hope, the visibility was frequently reduced to one quarter mile or less in snow and blowing snow. At Shishmaref, the visibility was reduced to zero at times in snow and blowing snow. The Shishmaref AWOS reported wind gusts to 44 mph/38kt. At Kivalina, the visibility was reduced to zero at times in heavy snow and blowing snow. The Kivalina ASOS reported wind gusts to 49 mph/43kt.

Zone 208: Blizzard conditions were observed during the afternoon and evening hours of the 27th at Noatak. The visibility was frequently reduced to one quarter mile or less in snow and blowing snow. A peak wind gust of 48 mph/42kt was reported by the Noatak AWOS.

Zone 209: Blizzard conditions were observed at Kotzebue during the morning hours of the 26th. The visibility was frequently reduced to near zero in heavy snow and blowing snow. The Kotzebue ASOS reported sustained winds of 30 to 40 mph with gusts as high as 53 mph/46kt. The blizzard conditions re-developed again on the morning of the 27th, and continued into the late evening hours of the 27th. The wind at the Kotzebue ASOS gusted as high as 64 mph/56kt, and the visibility was reduced to one quarter mile in snow and blowing snow. There was a third round of blizzard conditions during the late morning and early afternoon hours of the 28th. The visibility was reduced to near zero at Kotzebue, and the wind gusted to 46 mph/40kt. In Selawik, the visibility was reduced to one quarter of a mile or less in snow and blowing snow. The Selawik AWOS reported wind gusts as high as 45 mph/39kt.

Zone 210: Blizzard conditions were observed at Buckland during the morning and early afternoon hours on the 26th. The visibility was frequently reduced to near zero in snow and blowing snow. The Buckland AWOS reported sustained winds of 35 to 45 mph with wind gusts as high as 59 mph/51kt. The blizzard conditions at Buckland re-developed briefly during the afternoon and early evening hours of the 27th. The visibility was again reduced to near zero, and the wind gusted as high as 54 mph/47kt.

Zone 211: Blizzard conditions were observed at Nome during the morning and afternoon hours on the 27th. The visibility was reduced to near zero at times in heavy snow and blowing snow. The Nome ASOS reported wind gusts to 45 mph/39kt.

Zone 212: Blizzard conditions were observed at Saint Michael during the early morning hours on the 26th. A northwest wind of 30 to 40 mph with gusts to 48 mph/42kt was observed at the St. Michael AWSS. The visibility was reduced to one quarter or a mile in snow and blowing snow. The wind gusted as high as 52 mph/45kt at the Koyuk AWOS during this time and the visibility was occasionally reduced to one quarter mile in snow and blowing snow. The blizzard conditions re-developed late on the morning of the 27th and continued into the early evening hours at Unalakleet. The visibility was reduced to near zero at times. The Unalakleet AWOS reported an east wind that gusted as high as 53 mph/46kt.

Zone 213: Blizzard conditions as well as high winds were observed on Saint Lawrence Island during the morning hours of the 26th and along the Bering Strait coast during the morning and afternoon hours of the 26th. The worst conditions were observed at Savoonga. Shortly after 1 am, the wind increased to sustained speeds of 75 to 85 mph. Wind gusts as high as 99 mph were observed at the Savoonga AWOS. There were unconfirmed reports of wind gusts as high as 116 mph about 500 yards south of the airport on the hills at the Savoonga wind farm. The high winds lasted until around 6 am at which time the wind backed into the east to southeast and diminished. At Gambell, the wind gusted as high as 61 mph, and was much more in line with what the pressure gradient would suggest. The high winds produced significant damage in the village on Savoonga. At least three homes had significant damage with their roofs either partially or totally blown off. Many homes had significant damage to their roofs and siding. Several chimneys were blown off of houses and the chimney from the new school that was being built was found on the shore fast ice. Gravel from the airport was blown one half mile into the village and damaged homes in the village. Numerous phone and power lines were knocked down by the high winds, and fuel tanks along the side of many homes were blown over. No injuries or fatalities were reported from this storm.|On the Bering Strait coast, the wind gusted as high as 86 mph/75kt at the Wales AWSS with blizzard conditions in heavy snow and blowing and drifting snow. At the Teller AWSS, the wind gusted as high as 66 mph/57kt with blizzard conditions in heavy snow and blowing and drifting snow.

Zone 214: Blizzard conditions were observed across the Yukon Delta during the morning hours of the 27th. The visibility was reduced to near zero at times at Scammon Bay. The Scammon Bay AWSS reported wind gusts as high as 61mph/53kt. The blizzard conditions also likely occurred inland, and the visibility was reduced to one quarter mile or less at times at Mountain Village and Saint Marys, but there was a significant amount of missing data at the Mountain Village AWSS and the Saint Marys AWOS.

Zone 215: Blizzard conditions were observed at Marshall during the late morning and afternoon hours on the 27th. The visibility was reduced to one quarter mile or less in snow and blowing snow. The wind gusted to 45 mph/39kt at the Marshall AWSS.

Zone 217: It is estimated that around 10 inches of snow fell in parts of the Upper Kobuk and Noatak Valleys, based on the heavy snow that fell in zone 209 at Kotzebue. In addition, there was likely a significant amount of blowing and drifting snow. The visibility was reduced to one quarter mile or less at Ambler during the late afternoon and evening hours of the 28th, and the Ambler AWOS reported sustained wind of 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 39 mph/34kt.