Blizzard, Western Arctic Coast
- When
- January 1, 9:26 PM AKST to January 2, 3:00 PM AKST
- Where
- Western Arctic Coast forecast zone
- Reported by
- Law Enforcement
Blizzard in Alaska, January 1 to 2, 2011
A 960 mb low approximately 200 miles southwest of Saint Lawrence Island combined with a 1026 mb high across the northern Beaufort Sea to produce strong winds and snow along with blizzard conditions along the western and northern arctic coast as well as the central Beaufort Sea coast. Zone 201: Blizzard conditions were observed at Wainwright from 0027AKST through at least 1127AKST on the 2nd.
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- 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 AFG wrote it up.
A 960 mb low approximately 200 miles southwest of Saint Lawrence Island combined with a 1026 mb high across the northern Beaufort Sea to produce strong winds and snow along with blizzard conditions along the western and northern arctic coast as well as the central Beaufort Sea coast.
Zone 201: Blizzard conditions were observed at Wainwright from 0027AKST through at least 1127AKST on the 2nd. The visibility at the Wainwright ASOS was one quarter of a mile or less in snow and blowing snow. The sensor became inoperable after 1127AKST and it is likely that the blizzard conditions persisted into the mid-afternoon. The sensor was restored to service around 1900AKST and the blizzard conditions had ended by this time. A peak wind gust of 42 kt (48 mph) was observed at the Wainwright ASOS. Law enforcement at Point Lay also observed blizzard conditions on the 2nd. The Point Lay AWOS visibility sensor became inoperable during the event, but there was a peak wind gust of 53 kt (61 mph). The visibility sensor was observing visibilities of one quarter of a mile in snow as the wind began to pick up prior to the onset of the blizzard conditions.
Zone 202: Blizzard conditions were observed at Barrow from 0100AKST through 1912AKST on the 2nd. The visibility was one quarter mile or less in snow and blowing snow. There was a peak wind gust of 44 kt (51 mph) at the Barrow ASOS.
Zone 203: Blizzard conditions were observed at Deadhorse from 0053AKST through 1253AKST on the 2nd. The visibility was frequently reduced to one quarter mile in snow and blowing snow. There was a peak wind gust of 46 kt (53 mph) at the Deadhorse ASOS. Blizzard conditions also likely occurred during the morning hours at Nuiqsut as the visibility was frequently reduced to one quarter of mile, but the wind sensor was inoperable during the event.
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 Jan 1, 4:10 PM AKST, 5 hours 16 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 1, 4:10 PM AKST, 5 hours 16 minutes before
NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK 410 PM AKST SAT JAN 1 2011 .SYNOPSIS... ALOFT... THE LONG WAVE PATTERN CONSISTING OF A TROUGH OVER THE BERING SEA AND A RIDGE OVER MAINLAND ALASKA WILL BECOME PROGRESSIVE AS A SERIES OF STRONG SHORTWAVES MAKE THEIR WAY NORTH ACROSS ALASKA. 850 MB TEMPERATURES NEAR 0C SOUTHEAST OF BETHEL TO RUBY TO DENALI WILL COOL SUN AS THE AIR IS PINCHED ALOFT AS IT IS FORCED EAST AHEAD OF THE FRONT. THIS IS EXPECTED TO CAUSE AREAS OF FREEZING RAIN IN THE AREA SOUTHEAST OF THAT DEFINED AREA TONIGHT. SURFACE... A STRONG 961 MB LOW 100 NM WEST OF NUNIVAK ISLAND WILL MOVE TO NEAR GAMBELL AS A 966 MB LOW BY 3PM SUN AND INTO THE CHUKCHI SEA AS A 989 MB LOW BY 3AM MON. A WEATHER FRONT FROM THIS LOW TO NORTON SOUND TO BRISTOL BAY WILL MOVE TO THE BERING STRAIT TO MCGRATH BY 3AM SUN...TO WAINWRIGHT TO MCGRATH BY 3PM SUN AND TO BARROW TO MCGRATH BY 3AM MON. STORM TOTALS OF 6-10 INCHES OF SNOW WILL FALL ALONG THE WEST COAST WITH THIS FRONT WITH 4-8 INCHES INLAND TAPERING OFF TO A TRACE BY THE CENTRAL INTERIOR. THERE ARE WIDESPREAD BLIZZARD CONDITIONS NOW OCCURRING ALONG THE WEST COAST SOUTH OF THE BERING STRAIT SPREADING NORTH TO WAINWRIGHT TONIGHT ALONG WITH EASTERLY WINDS 30-50KT. SNOW WILL TAPER OFF TO SNOW SHOWERS SOUTH OF THE FRONT BUT WITH SOUTH WINDS OF 30-50 KT IN THE POISON TAIL IN THE SOUTHEAST QUADRANT OF THE LOW BLIZZARD CONDITIONS MAY LAST INTO MONDAY NORTH OF THE BERING STRAIT. A HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE NORTH OF THE ARCTIC COAST WILL PERSIST THROUGH SUNDAY AND THEN MOVE EAST. THIS WILL CAUSE EAST WINDS TO INCREASE ALONG THE COAST TONIGHT AS THE LOW MOVES NORTH AND TIGHTENS THE GRADIENT. THIS WILL CAUSE BLOWING SNOW AND LOW WINDS CHILLS ALONG THE COAST TONIGHT AND MON WITH BLIZZARD CONDITIONS IN ZONE 201. && .DISCUSSION... MODELS INITIALIZE WELL AND SHOW SIMILAR SOLUTIONS 3AM SUN...THEN GFS FASTER ON MOVEMENT OF LOW ALONG THE WEST COAST. FAVOR THE FASTER GFS MOVEMENT GIVEN THE STRENGTH OF THE FLOW ALOFT. && .AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WIND CHILL ADVISORY FOR AKZ201. WINTER STORM WARNING FOR AKZ208-AKZ210-AKZ211-AKZ212-AKZ214- AKZ215-AKZ216-AKZ217. WIND ADVISORY FOR AKZ225-AKZ226. BLIZZARD WARNING FOR AKZ201-AKZ207-AKZ209-AKZ213. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR AKZ202-AKZ203-AKZ204-AKZ205-AKZ206- AKZ227. HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY WARNING FOR PKZ210. GALE WARNING FOR PKZ200-PKZ210-PKZ215-PKZ220-PKZ225-PKZ230- PKZ235. BRISK WIND ADVISORY FOR PKZ235-PKZ240-PKZ245. && JB JAN 11
Event by event
3 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.
Blizzard, Central Beaufort Sea Coast
- When
- January 2, 12:53 AM AKST to 12:53 PM AKST
- Where
- Central Beaufort Sea Coast forecast zone
- Reported by
- ASOS
Blizzard, Northern Arctic Coast
- When
- January 2, 1:00 AM AKST to 7:12 PM AKST
- Where
- Northern Arctic Coast forecast zone
- Reported by
- ASOS
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.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Mississippi, January 1, 2011
- Cold in Illinois, January 1, 2011
- Heavy Snow and Frost and Freeze in Nevada, January 1 to 3, 2011
- Extreme Cold and Cold in Arizona, January 1 to 6, 2011
- Wildfire in Puerto Rico, January 1 to 25, 2011
- Drought in Texas, January 1 to 31, 2011
- Heavy Snow and Heavy Rain in California, January 1 to 4, 2011
- Strong Wind in Wisconsin, January 1, 2011
- Drought in Arkansas, January 1 to 31, 2011
- Drought in Georgia, January 1 to 31, 2011
- Blizzard in South Dakota, January 1, 2011
- Drought in Kentucky, January 1 to 31, 2011
More
Every storm in Alaska in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, January 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: 266674, 266676, 266675.