A very strong low with a central pressure of 936 mb developed off Japan and moved to the western Aleutian Islands. As this low approached winds in the western Aleutians reached high wind levels even though the system was slowly weakening.
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 AFC wrote it up.
A very strong low with a central pressure of 936 mb developed off Japan and moved to the western Aleutian Islands. As this low approached winds in the western Aleutians reached high wind levels even though the system was slowly weakening.
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 Jan 15, 4:00 PM AKST, 6 hours 56 minutes earlier.
SOUTHCENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ANCHORAGE AK 400 PM AKST TUE JAN 15 2013 .ANALYSIS AND UPPER LEVELS...THE LARGEST FEATURE ON THE WEATHER MAP IS A LARGE 937 MB LOW SOUTHWEST OF THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS. THIS LOW IS TRACKING SLOWLY NORTHEAST AND WILL BECOME THE MAIN WEATHER MAKER FOR THE BERING SEA AND ALEUTIAN ISLANDS IN SHORT ORDER. THE SURFACE FEATURES OVER MAINLAND ALASKA AS WELL AS THE GULF OF ALASKA AND EASTERN BERING SEA ARE WEAK TODAY WITH A RIDGE OVER THE GULF THAT PUSHES INTO SOUTH CENTRAL AND PART OF SOUTHWEST ALASKA AND A WEAK LOW IN BRISTOL BAY. THERE IS ALSO A SURFACE LOW IN THE CHUKCHI SEA THAT HAS A WEAK UPPER LEVEL WAVE ASSOCIATED WITH IT THAT IS MOVING OVER SOUTHWEST ALASKA THROUGH TONIGHT. THE JET STREAM COMES WEST TO EAST OFF OF JAPAN AND IS FEEDING THE LARGE STORM SOUTHWEST OF THE ALEUTIANS. THE JET THEN WEAKENS SOME AS IT TURNS MORE TO THE NORTHEAST AND THEN INCREASES OVER THE GULF OF ALASKA THROUGH THE NORTHERN PANHANDLE OF THE STATE. THIS JET IS THE REASON FOR THE CLOUDS OVER SOUTH CENTRAL ALASKA IN SPITE OF THE SURFACE RIDGE. .MODEL DISCUSSION...MODELS HAVE ALL LOCKED ON VERY WELL TO THE LARGE STORM SOUTHWEST OF THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS. MODEL-TO-MODEL AND RUN-TO-RUN CONSISTENCY WITH THIS STORM IS VERY GOOD. THE MODELS ARE IMPROVING IN THE GULF OF ALASKA REGION BUT THERE ARE STILL SOME ISSUES TO RESOLVE. THE NAM AND ECMWF ARE CLOSING IN ON A COMMON STRUCTURE AND TRACK OF THE LOWS MOVING OUT OF THE NORTH PACIFIC TO THE NORTH GULF COAST. THE GFS IS STILL OUT ON ITS OWN WITH VARYING SOLUTIONS FROM RUN TO RUN. THE CENTRAL PRESSURES OF THE NAM AND ECMWF HAVE BEEN SIGNIFICANT BUT WITH THE NEWEST NAM RUN DEEPENING TO NEAR THE ECMWF STRENGTH ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT IT FURTHER CONFIRMS THAT THE NAM/ECMWF GUIDANCE SHOULD BE THE BEST. .SHORT TERM FORECAST...A HIGH WIND WARNING IS IN EFFECT FROM ADAK WESTWARD FOR OVERNIGHT INTO TOMORROW DUE TO A FRONT ASSOCIATED WITH THE APPROACHING LOW. PRECIPITATION IN THE WESTERN ALEUTIANS WILL START OFF AS SNOW AS THE FRONT APPROACHES AND THEN TURN TO RAIN WITH THE STRONG WARMING. THERE MAY BE SOME REDUCED VISIBILITIES FOR A SHORT TIME DUE TO BLOWING SNOW BUT IT DOES NOT APPEAR THAT THIS WILL LAST VERY LONG IF IT DOES OCCUR. THE UPPER LEVEL WAVE IN SOUTHWEST ALASKA AND THE WEAK LOW IN BRISTOL BAY IS PRODUCING ENOUGH LIFTING TO BRING A LITTLE SNOWFALL INTO THE AREA. THIS WILL END FROM WEST TO EAST OVERNIGHT WITH JUST SOME SNOW REMAINING ALONG THE ALASKA RANGE AND ALEUTIAN RANGE BY MORNING. AS THIS WAVE PROGRESSES EASTWARD INTO TOMORROW IT WILL RUN INTO SOME MOISTURE MOVING INTO SOUTH CENTRAL ALASKA AND THIS WILL BE ENOUGH TO CAUSE SOME LIGHT SNOWFALL IN FROM THE KENAI PENINSULA THROUGH THE SUSITNA VALLEY INCLUDING THE ANCHORAGE AREA AND MATANUSKA VALLEY. THE DEVELOPMENT OF A WEAK LOW NEAR THE NORTH GULF COAST WILL ENHANCE THE SNOWFALL OVER THE PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND AREA AND NORTHWARD INTO THE COPPER RIVER BASIN TOMORROW. .LONG TERM FORECAST...FOR THIS WEEKEND MODELS STILL SHOW A BROAD TROUGH OVER THE WESTERN PART OF THE AREA HIGHLIGHTED BY THE COMPLEX UPPER LOW MEANDERING AROUND THE BERING SEA/ALEUTIAN CHAIN WITH UPPER LEVEL RIDGING BUILDING INTO THE EASTERN GULF. AS ENERGY ROTATES AROUND THE BASE OF THE TROUGH IN THE NORTH PACIFIC AND RUNS UP AGAINST THE RIDGE...STORM TRACK WILL BE DIRECTED NORTHWARD TOWARDS THE AKPEN/EASTERN BERING SEA. OVERALL...EXPECTING A FAIRLY WARM AND ACTIVE PATTERN FOR THE BULK OF THE AREA FROM THIS WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. .AER/ALU...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY PUBLIC...HIGH WIND WARNING 187 191. MARINE...GALE FIRE WEATHER...NONE. JAN 13
1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Shemya (PASY) reported winds over 70 mph from around 11 PM AKST January 15 through 9 AM AKST January 16th. The peak of the event was 74 mph. No reported damage or injuries.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alaska in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, January 2013
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: 433000.