A rapidly developing storm force low moved into the eastern Gulf of Alaska on the morning of Friday, September 24th. The storm center developed to 953 MB around 9 AM AKST and an associated, very strong front moved onto the south coast of the panhandle that Friday afternoon.
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 AJK wrote it up.
A rapidly developing storm force low moved into the eastern Gulf of Alaska on the morning of Friday, September 24th. The storm center developed to 953 MB around 9 AM AKST and an associated, very strong front moved onto the south coast of the panhandle that Friday afternoon. Winds in excess 75 MPH were observed. After the front passed there was a significant outbreak of maritime thunderstorms over the coastal waters with a waterspout conditions observed on radar.
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 Juneau, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 24, 4:30 AM AKST, 1 hour 30 minutes earlier.
SOUTHEAST ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JUNEAU AK
530 AM AKDT FRI SEP 24 2010
.SHORT TERM...BUSY MORNING WITH DEVELOPING STORM FORCE LOW
MOVING INTO THE SOUTH CENTRAL GULF. THE LOW PRESSURE CENTER IS
NOW AT 959 MB NEAR AND LOCATED NEAR 54N AND 147W. EXPLOSIVE
CYCLOGENESIS CONTINUES WITH 3HR PRESSURE DROPS OF NEARLY 8 MB
NOTED AT BUOY 46184 AND APPROACHING 11 MB TO THE SOUTHEAST OF
46184.
BOTH WIND AND RAIN ARE ON THE INCREASE ACROSS THE EASTERN GULF
AND PANHANDLE ATTM. HIGH WIND WARNINGS BEGIN IN ZONES 27 AND
28 AT 7 AM AND LOOK TO BE ON TRACK WITH ADVISORY LEVEL GUSTS AT
BOTH PANT AND PAHY ALREADY THIS MORNING.
WINDS WILL RAPIDLY INCREASE THROUGH THE MORNING ACROSS THE
EASTERN GULF WHERE STORM FORCE WINDS ARE EXPECTED. CLARENCE
STRAIT ALSO EXPECTED TO EXPERIENCE STORM FORCE WINDS WITH 42 KTS
AND A GUST TO 55 KTS AT LINCOLN ROCK ALREADY.
ADVISORY LEVEL WINDS ON TAP FOR ZONES 29 26 AND 23 THIS MORNING
THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON. WINDS WILL BE ON THE INCREASE FOR THE
CENTRAL PANHANDLE AS WELL WHERE WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO BE IN THE
20 TO 30 MPH RANGE WITH HIGHER GUSTS IN EXPOSED AREAS.
UPDATED INHERITED GRIDS WITH THE 00Z GFS WITH ONLY MINOR CHANGES
TO THE WIND FIELDS. THE 06Z GFS IS COMING IN STRONGER AND
SLIGHTLY CLOSER TO THE COAST WHICH WOULD INCREASE WINDS TO
ADVISORY LEVELS IN PAGS PAOH AND PAJN. WILL NEED TO CLOSELY
MONITOR STORM DEVELOPMENT FOR POSSIBLE ADVISORIES IN THESE AREAS.
THE 850 MB LOW LEVEL JET DEPICTED IN THE 06Z GFS ALONG THE OUTER
COAST HAS INCREASED TO NEARLY 100 KTS BUT FALLS APART RAPIDLY AS
IT MOVES NORTH ALONG THE COAST THIS AFTERNOON.
6HR QPF RATES ARE NEAR ONE AND A QUARTER INCHES ALONG AND AHEAD
OF THE STRONG FRONT MOVING INTO THE PANHANDLE AND TAPER OFF TO
JUST OVER ONE HALF OF AN INCH POST FRONTAL.
MODEL AGREEMENT REMAINS HIGH THROUGH THE SHORT TERM WITH ONLY
MINOR DIFFERENCES IN TRACK AND STRENGTH. FORECAST CONFIDENCE
REMAINS HIGH THROUGH THE SHORT TERM.
&&
.LONG TERM...OPERATINAL MODELS AND ENSEMBLES REMAIN IN GOOD
AGREEMENT THROUGH THE WEEK. LONG WAVE PATTERN KEEPS A TROUGH IN
THE CENTRAL GULF WITH A SERIES OF WET SHORT WAVES LIFTING NE
TOWARDS THE PANHANDLE. WILL CONTINUE TO SEE SW FLOW AND WITH JET
AXIS LOCATED AT THE BOTTOM OF THE LONG WAVE TROUGH THE REGION
WILL CONTINUE TO SEE RAIN THROUGH THE END OF THE MONTH. WILL SEE
SHOTS OF COLD AIR MOVING DOWN THE BACK SIDE OF THE TROUGH
REINFORCING ITS STRENGTH AND POSITION. 850 MB TEMPERATURES DROPPING
TO -2 C TUE WITH SNOW LEVELS NEARING 3000 FT.
REMNANTS OF STORM FORCE LOW CURRENTLY IN THE AK GULF WILL WEAKEN
AND MOVE TOWARDS THE NW GULF SUN BEFORE NEXT DEVELOPING LOW
PRESSURE SYSTEM TRACKING ALONG THE N PACIFIC DEEPENING TO ABOVE
980 MB BEFORE REACHING THE COAST NEAR CROSS SOUND. WEAK RIDGE WILL
QUICKLY MOVE ACROSS THE PANHANDLE WITH A BRIEF LULL IN PRECIP
WEDNESDAY. TYPHOON MALAKAS CURRENTLY ALONG THE COAST OF JAPAN WILL
BECOME EXTRA TROPICAL THIS WEEKEND AND TRACK NE TOWARD THE
ALEUTIAN ISLANDS BEFORE REACHING THE CENTRAL GULF THURSDAY. THIS
SYSTEM WILL BRING SIGNIFICANT TROPICAL MOISTURE WITH IT. GFS
ACCUMULATED PRECIP TOTAL FOR THE WEEK RANGE BETWEEN 8 AND 21
INCHES.
WITH MODEL CONSISTENCY HIGH FORECAST CONFIDENCE IS ABOVE AVERAGE
FOR THE LONG TERM. USED A BLEND OF 00Z GFS/EC TO UPDATE GRIDS.
OVERALL ONLY MINOR CHANGES RESULTED.
.AJK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 4 PM AKDT THIS AFTERNOON FOR AKZ023-026.
HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL 4 PM AKDT THIS AFTERNOON FOR AKZ027-028.
WIND ADVISORY FROM 10 AM THIS MORNING TO 4 PM AKDT THIS
AFTERNOON FOR AKZ029.
MARINE...STORM WARNING FOR PKZ036-041>043-051-052.
GALE WARNING FOR PKZ021-022-033>035.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR PKZ011>013-031-032.
&&
CCC/PRB2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Hydaburg ASOS observed gusts to 79 MPH on the morning of 9/24.
Ketchikan airport observed gusts to 64 MPH at 0830 AKST on Friday 9/24.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alaska in 2010Every state in 2010This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, September 2010
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: 261748, 261753.