Blizzard and High Wind in Alaska, February 26 to 28, 2011

Name: Blizzard and High Wind in Alaska, February 26 to 28, 2011
Start: 2011-02-26T06:00
End: 2011-02-28T09:50
Location: Alaska

February 26 to 28, 2011 · NWS AFC · 3 events in 2 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $5,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 3

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.

Strong low pressure in the Gulf of Alaska combined with intense high pressure over interior Alaska produced winds in excess of 100 mph through the Thompson Pass area. The strong wind re suspended snow in the area to produce blizzard conditions. Wind out of the Copper River Delta was estimated around 90 mph. The intense wind in Valdez resulted in closing of the Alyeska Pipeline terminal. Peak wind at the terminal was 95 mph and the peak wind in the Valdez harbor was 87 mph.

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 Feb 26, 5:00 AM AKST, 1 hour earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 26, 5:00 AM AKST, 1 hour before

SOUTHCENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ANCHORAGE AK
500 AM AKST SAT FEB 26 2011

.MODEL DISCUSSION...BIG CHANGE UNDERWAY TO OMEGA BLOCK PATTERN...AND
SO FAR MODELS ARE KEEPING UP WITH IT...EXHIBITING UNUSUALLY GOOD
AGREEMENT WITH EACH OTHER...AND GOOD CONTINUITY. SOME DIFFERENCES ARE
BEGINNING TO CROP UP AFTER 120 HOURS BETWEEN THE ECMWF AND GFS...SO
OPTED TO CONTINUE WITH THE GFS IN THE EXTENDED WITH IT'S SLIGHTLY
BETTER CONTINUITY. FOR THE SHORT TERM...NAM WAS USED FOR IT'S BETTER
TERRAIN RESOLUTION...IMPORTANT NEXT SEVERAL DAYS WITH EVOLVING STRONG
NRLY WIND PATTERN.

.ANALYSIS AND UPPER LEVELS...STRONG UPPER SHORT-WAVE IS CURRENTLY
EXITING FAR SE MAINLAND AK...WITH BRISK COLD NW TO N FLOW BEHIND
IT. 1053 MB SURFACE HIGH CENTRE IS LOCATED OVER ERN BERING BETWEEN
ST MATTHEW AND NUNIVAK ISLES. A 1003 MB SURFACE LOW/TROUGH HAS FORMED
OFFSHORE OF CAPE SPENCER...S OF YAKUTAT. NW TO N SURFACE PRESSURE
GRADIENTS ARE TIGHTENING UP AS A RESULT...AND WITH STRONG NW TO N
FLOW ALOFT...SURFACE WINDS OVER MUCH OF THE MAINLAND ARE ALREADY
INCREASING...HELPED ALSO BY SIGNIFICANT COLD AIR ADVECTION. UPPER
RIDGING IS BUILDING N INTO THE BERING SEA FROM THE PACIFIC...CENTERED
OVER THE ERN ALEUTIANS AND AK PEN. THE ONLY PRECIP. OF ANY CONSEQUENCE
FOR THE AOR IS RAIN OVER THE CENTRAL AND ERN ALEUTIANS FROM A WEAKENING
OCCLUDED FRONTAL SYSTEM LIFTING N AHEAD OF A 979 MB LOW 500 NM S OF
KISKA.

.SHORT TERM FORECAST...UPPER RIDGING WILL CONTINUE TO AMPLIFY TODAY
AND TONIGHT...FORMING A CLOSED 565 DM OR SO HIGH SUN CENTERED OVER
THE ERN BERING WHICH WILL PERSIST THROUGH TUE. STRONG CONSOLIDATED
NRLY LOW TO MID LEVEL FLOW AHEAD OF THIS OVER MAINLAND AK WILL ALIGN
WITH STRONG SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENT BETWEEN 1050 MB HIGH THAT MOVES
INLAND OVER INTERIOR TODAY/TONIGHT...AND DEEPENING LOW OVER SE AK THAT
SLOWLY DROPS S ALONG THE PANHANDLE AND BC COASTS THROUGH MON. THE GFS
FORECASTS IT TO REACH A MINIMUM PRESSURE OF AROUND 987 MB SUN AFTERNOON
OVER THE QUEEN CHARLOTTES.

ALEUTIANS: RAIN TODAY THROUGH THIS EVENING WITH GALES E TO SEGUAM ISLAND.
FOR ERN ALEUTIANS LOW CLOUDS AND PATCHY -RA. VERTICALLY STACKED LOW
LIFTING N JUST W OF PASY SUN WITH ANOTHER WAVE MON WILL CONTINUE PERIODS
OF RAIN AND GALES FROM SEGUAM ISLAND W. ERN ALEUTIANS WILL JUST SEE LOW
CLOUDS AND SMCR TO MIN GALE ERLY WINDS THROUGH MON/TUE.

SW AK: WITH SURFACE HIGH MOVING INLAND JUST TO N TONITE AND CLOSED UPPER
HIGH FORMING OFF COAST SUN...DRY WEATHER WITH OFFSHORE NRLY FLOW WILL
DEVELOP TODAY AND PERSIST THROUGH TUE. TEMPS. NOT AS COLD AS FURTHER E...
BUT WITH CLEAR SKIES...WILL BE AT LEAST SLIGHTLY BELOW AVERAGE. STRONGEST
WINDS WILL BE FURTHER E ALONG AK AND ALEUTIAN RANGES S INTO NRN AK PEN
TODAY THROUGH MON...BUT BELOW HIGH WIND CRITERIA.

S AND E OF THE AK RANGE: STRONG WINDS DEVELOPING TODAY/TONIGHT ALL ZONES
EXCEPT WRN KENAI AND COPPER RIVER BASIN AS NRLY WINDS ALOFT...STRONG N TO
NE SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENTS...AND COLD ADVECTION COME TOGETHER. 90-130 KT
NRLY UPPER JET WILL OVERLAY ENTIRE CENTRAL AK MAINLAND TONIGHT THROUGH SUN
AND INTO MON. HURRICANE FORCE WIND GUSTS LIKELY THOMPSON PASS/VALDEZ TOWN
...WHITTIER...AND COPPER RIVER DELTA...WHERE HIGH WIND WARNINGS ARE IN
EFFECT. STRONG WINDS WITH GUSTS TO 55 MPH LIKELY MATANUSKA VALLEY...AND
45 MPH W ANCHORAGE AND NRN SUSITNA VALLEY. WINDS WILL BEGIN EASING MON
AND WILL BE SIGNIFICANTLY LIGHTER TUE AS STRONG SURFACE HIGH OVER INTERIOR
SHIFTS E INTO YUKON...LIGHTENING UP THE N TO E SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENTS.
WELL BELOW-AVERAGE TEMPERATURES TONIGHT THROUGH TUE ALL AREAS...AND ENOUGH
WIND WITH THESE FOR WIND CHILL ADVISORY NRN SUSITNA VALLEY.

.LONG TERM FORECAST...THE CLOSED UPPER HIGH OVER THE ERN BERING WITH
STRONG CONSOLIDATED NRLY FLOW AHEAD OF IT OVER MAINLAND AK IS FORECAST
BY BOTH ECMWF AND GFS TO REMAIN IN PLACE INTO THU. THEREAFTER...THE
GFS WEAKENS IT SLIGHTLY AS AN UPPER LOW BEGINS TO FORM OVER SE AK THU
NIGHT. THE ECMWF SHOWS THIS PATTERN...BUT HAS A DEEP UPPER LOW FORMING
IN THE GULF...PUTTING MOST OF MAINLAND AK IN AN ERLY FLOW BETWEEN IT
AND A CLOSED UPPER HIGH OVER THE ARCTIC. EITHER WAY...AT LEAST THROUGH
FRI...COLD DRY WEATHER WITH STRONG GUSTY N TO E WINDS WILL CONTINUE OVER
ALL MAINLAND AK...WITH HIGH WIND EVENTS POSSIBLE IN FAVORED GAPS. HIGH
PRESSURE RIDGING WILL CONTINUE TO KEEP DRY WEATHER IN PLACE AS WELL FOR
ERN ALEUTIANS AND AK PEN. LOWS WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE N OVER WRN AND CENTRAL
ALEUTIANS IN THE SRLY OMEGA-BLOCK FLOW THROUGH AT LEAST THU...IF NOT
LONGER...FOR PERIODS OF RAIN AND GALES.

.AER/ALU...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY
PUBLIC...HIGH WIND WARNINGS: 125-NEAR WHITTIER 131-ALL 135-COPPER R. DELTA
         WIND CHILL ADVISORY 145 NORTH OF TALKEETNA
MARINE...STORMS: 120 127 130 132
          GALES: 121 125 126 128 129 138 140 141 150 170 172 175 176 179
                 185 351-352 411-414
HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY: 120 121 125-130 132 138 140 141 150 165 185 414

MAR FEB 11

Event by event

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

Blizzard, Nern P.W. Snd

When: February 26, 6:00 AM AKST to 9:15 PM AKST
Where: Nern P.W. Snd forecast zone
Reported by: Department of Highways

High Wind, Sern P.W. Snd

When: February 26, 1:00 PM AKST to February 28, 1:00 AM AKST
Where: Sern P.W. Snd forecast zone
Measured: 78 kt (90 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: C-MAN Station

Wind speeds are estimated based upon the Strawberry Reef C-man site and surounding observations.

High Wind, Nern P.W. Snd

When: February 26, 2:05 PM AKST to February 28, 9:50 AM AKST
Where: Nern P.W. Snd forecast zone
Measured: 87 kt (100 mph) measured gust
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: Department of Highways

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 2011 Every state in 2011 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, February 2011

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: 276046, 276048, 276047.