Name: Extreme Cold in Alaska, February 20, 2013
Start: 2013-02-20T07:56
End: 2013-02-20T15:56
Location: Alaska

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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 strong 1042 mb high pressure center over the Arctic Ocean produced strong winds along the North Slope. Temperatures of 25 to 35 below zero combined with a northeast wind of around 15 mph to produce wind chills as low as 64 below at the Point Lay AWSS.

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 Feb 20, 6:05 AM AKST, 1 hour 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 20, 6:05 AM AKST, 1 hour 51 minutes before

NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK
605 AM AKST WED FEB 20 2013

.DISCUSSION...
MODELS IN DECENT AGREEMENT THROUGH 48 HOURS. A SURFACE LOW NEAR
KODIAK ISLAND WILL MOVE SLOWLY EAST THROUGH THE NEXT 24 HOURS TO
SOUTH YAKUTAT BY EARLY THU MORNING WHILE SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW PICKS
UP MOISTURE AND OVERRUNS THE MOISTURE IN THE CENTRAL INTERIOR
AHEAD OF THE UPPER LEVEL TROUGH.

CURRENTLY...AN UPPER LEVEL COLD LOW NEAR MACKENZIE BAY WILL BEGIN
TO MOVE WESTWARD AND ELONGATE SOUTHWESTWARD OVER NORTHERN ALASKA
THROUGH THU. THIS WILL REINFORCE THE COLD AIR OVER THE INTERIOR AND
EXPAND IT WESTWARD THROUGH THU. THIS WILL CONTINUE TO KEEP THE
GRADIENT TIGHT OVER THE ARCTIC COAST...THEREFORE WINDCHILL WARNINGS
AND ADVISORIES HAVE BEEN ISSUED AND CONTINUED. WINDS ARE NEAR
ADVISORY LEVEL OVER THE INTERIOR BECAUSE OF THE TIGHT GRADIENT AS
WELL.

THE ELONGATED UPPER TROUGH WILL MOVE TO ABOUT THE SEWARD PENINSULA
BY FRI AFTERNOON. THIS SHOULD KEEP THE COLD AIR POOLED OVER
NORTHERN ALASKA TILL THE WEEKEND AT LEAST. A RIDGE THEN SETS UP
OVER THE INTERIOR BY THE WEEKEND. TEMPERATURES WILL CONTINUE TO
MODERATE THEREAFTER OVER ALL OF NORTHERN ALASKA.

NOT MUCH PRECIPITATION FOR THE NEXT WEEK OR SO OVER THE ARCTIC AND
WEST COAST AND PROBABLY LESS THAN AN INCH OR SO OVER THE INTERIOR
WITH THE OVERRUNNING BEGINNING THU MORNING THROUGH THE EVENING.

&&

.AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WIND CHILL ADVISORY FOR AKZ202-AKZ204-AKZ210.

WIND CHILL WARNING FOR AKZ201-AKZ203.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR AKZ205-AKZ212-AKZ214-AKZ219-AKZ220-
AKZ221.

BRISK WIND ADVISORY FOR PKZ200-PKZ210-PKZ225-PKZ230-PKZ235-
PKZ240-PKZ245.
&&

CF FEB 13

Event by event

1 extreme cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Western Arctic Coast

When: February 20, 7:56 AM AKST to 3:56 PM AKST
Where: Western Arctic Coast forecast zone
Reported by: ASOS

What these are

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill: Temperatures or wind chills at or below the local warning criteria, or cold that caused deaths.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Alaska in 2013 Every state in 2013 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, February 2013

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: 433482.