A significant run of water and ice along with an ice jam that extended 10 miles up river of Marshall produced moderate flooding in the village of Marshall. By the morning of the 19th, water was getting into the low parts of the village and the road to the airport was beginning to flood.
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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.
The episode as NWS AFG wrote it up.
A significant run of water and ice along with an ice jam that extended 10 miles up river of Marshall produced moderate flooding in the village of Marshall. By the morning of the 19th, water was getting into the low parts of the village and the road to the airport was beginning to flood. The water continued to rise, and by the evening of the 20th about one quarter mile of the road to the airport was under water. As the water continued to rise, low lying areas of the village were flooded by the morning of the 21st. The water levels began to slowly fall on the 22nd, however, low lying areas around the village remained under water and the road to the airport remained impassable. The water slowly receded on the 23rd, and by the evening of the 24th the water levels dropped in the lower part of the village with dry ground almost to the bank. The road to the airport continued to have up to 2 feet of water over a section that is about 100 yards across. No information available on property damage, a preliminary estimate is guessed at $40,000.
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 May 19, 5:02 AM AKST, 4 hours 28 minutes earlier.
NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK 602 AM AKDT TUE MAY 19 2009 .SYNOPSIS... THE LARGE BLOCKING HIGH ALOFT OVER THE ALCAN BORDER WILL BUILD WEST TO THE WEST COAST OF ALASKA THROUGH WED AND THEN PERSIST INTO THE WEEKEND. THIS WILL KEEP CONDITIONS DRY AND WARM IN THE EASTERN INTERIOR THROUGH THE WEEKEND...AND CAUSE GRADUAL WARMING AND DRYING ACROSS THE WESTERN INTERIOR, THE WEST COAST AND THE ARCTIC COAST. A THERMAL TROUGH OVER THE EASTERN INTERIOR WILL PERSIST INTO THU AND POSSIBLE LONGER ALONG WITH ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES. WILL SEE WINDS BLOWING INTO THIS TROUGH INCREASE TO 15 MPH IN THE AFTERNOONS...ESPECIALLY IN PASSES. A STATIONARY FRONT FROM KODIAK TO AMBLER TO BARROW WILL PERSIST TODAY AND THEN DISSIPATE TONIGHT. ISOLATED RAIN SHOWERS ALONG THIS WILL DISSIPATE TONIGHT. ISOLATED RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH TONIGHT WEST OF THE FRONT. A SURFACE LOW PRESSURE TROUGH JUST WEST OF ST LAWRENCE ISLAND TO ST MATTHEW ISLAND WILL MOVE ALONG THE WEST COAST OF ALASKA TUE NIGHT. ISOLATED SNOW SHOWERS ALONG THIS FEATURE WILL PERSIST INTO WED. THERE WILL BE AREAS OF DENSE FOG OVER THE WEST COAST THIS MORNING SOUTH OF THE BERING STRAIT AS WELL. A SURFACE HIGH WILL BUILD OVER THE WEST COAST AND ARCTIC COAST WED AND PERSIST INTO THU. EXPECT STRATUS AND FOG UNDER THIS HIGH OVER MARINE AREAS. && .DISCUSSION... MODELS INITIALIZE WELL AND SHOW SIMILAR SOLUTIONS ON MOST FIELDS. THE EXCEPTION IS THE 850 MB TEMPERATURES WHERE THE GFS BRINGS COLDER TEMPERATURES TO THE ARCTIC COAST ON WED-THU THAN THE NAM AND ECMF SHOW. IT LOOKS LIKE THE GFS MAY BE BRINGING THE COLD AIR TOO FAR SOUTH SINCE THE LARGE BLOCKING HIGH ALOFT REMAINS OVER ALASKA. && .FIRE WEATHER... WARMER THAN NORMAL AND DRY CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE THE RED FLAG CONDITIONS INTO WED IN THE EASTERN INTERIOR...WITH SOME INCREASE IN MOISTURE THU. && .HYDROLOGY... FLOODING IS EXPECTED OR OCCURRING ALONG MUCH OF THE YUKON RIVER FROM GRAYLING TO MOUNTAIN VILLAGE DUE TO HIGH WATER AND POSSIBLE ICE JAMS. EXPECT THAT A FLOOD WATCH WILL BE NEEDED TODAY OR WED FROM MOUNTAIN VILLAGE TO EMMONAK AS THE HIGH WATER HITS THE ICE IN PLACE THERE. WARM WEATHER IN THE BROOKS RANGE IS STARTING NORTH SLOPE BREAKUP AND WILL CONTINUE THIS WEEK. && .AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... RED FLAG WARNING FOR AKZ219-AKZ220-AKZ221-AKZ222-AKZ223-AKZ224- AKZ225-AKZ226. FLOOD WATCH FOR AKZ214. && JB MAY 09
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alaska in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, May 2009
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: 163455.