On the 20th a surge of water and ice from the upstream river ice breakup moved to near Fort Yukon causing flooding of low-lying areas. A large sheet of ice became stuck 12 miles upstream of Fort Yukon causing widespread flooding of low-lying areas to persist.
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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 AFG wrote it up.
On the 20th a surge of water and ice from the upstream river ice breakup moved to near Fort Yukon causing flooding of low-lying areas. A large sheet of ice became stuck 12 miles upstream of Fort Yukon causing widespread flooding of low-lying areas to persist. This affected the ball field, the old tank farm, the area surrounding the tribal hall, several homes, and one of several access roads to the airport. Around midnight on the 21st, the ice jam partially released though river levels did not rise significantly in town as a result. Later on the 22nd river levels began to slowly fall and by the morning of the 23rd levels were below flood stage. Damage amounts are estimated, and include repairs to 4 homes with major damage and 1 home with minor damage, along with affected roads, buildings and emergency response needs.
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 May 20, 2:06 AM AKST, 10 hours 54 minutes earlier.
NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK 306 AM AKDT MON MAY 20 2013 .DISCUSSION... UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WITH PARENT LOW 300 NM NORTHWEST OF BARROW EXTENDS SOUTHEAST TO NORTHWEST BRITISH COLUMBIA. AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE OVER THE SOUTHERN BERING SEA WILL CONTINUE TO BUILD NORTHEAST INTO SOUTHWEST ALASKA MONDAY AND INTO SOUTH CENTRAL ALASKA TUESDAY. A LOW IN THE SOUTHWEST BERING SEA CONTINUES TO PUMP AMPLE MOISTURE NORTHEAST INTO THE WEST COAST OF ALASKA AND WILL CONTINUE TO PROVIDE FOR MOISTURE TO THE THE WEST COAST INTO MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. MOISTURE CURRENTLY OVERRIDING COLD AIR MASS IN THE WESTERN INTERIOR AND WEST COAST WITH WARNING LEVEL SNOW FALL EXPECTED IN ZONES 207 AND 208 THROUGH NOON TODAY. WARM AIR MOVING NORTHEAST CONTINUES TO ERODE THE COLD AIR MASS WITH SNOW EXPECTED TO MIX TO RAIN SOUTH OF THE SEWARD PENINSULA THIS MORNING AND SNOW MIXING WITH RAIN THIS AFTERNOON ALONG THE SEWARD PENINSULA AND NORTON SOUND. SNOW IN THE WESTERN BROOKS MAY BRIEFLY MIX WITH RAIN THIS AFTERNOON AND THEN CHANGE BACK TO SNOW OVERNIGHT. BRIEF PERIODS OF FREEZING RAIN POSSIBLE TONIGHT IN THESE AREAS THOUGH NO ICE ACCUMULATION EXPECTED. SNOW PACK SHOULD RIPEN THIS WEEK IN WESTERN ALASKA WITH WARMER TEMPERATURES AND PERIODS OF RAIN. MODELS ARE IN GENERAL AGREEMENT WITH UPPER LEVEL RIDGE BUILDING NORTH INTO MAINLAND ALASKA THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF WEEK AND THEN MOVING INTO CANADA AS A UPPER LEVEL TROUGH REMAINS OVER THE BERING SEA. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE MODELS BECOMES MORE PRONOUNCED BY THE END OF THE WEEK WITH SHORT WAVE DETAILS BUT IN GENERAL A GRADUAL RETURN TO SEASONAL TEMPERATURES WITH LIMITED PRECIP IS EXPECTED IN THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN ALASKA WHILE THE WEST COAST SHORTWAVES ROTATING AROUND THE LONG WAVE TROUGH IN THE BERING SEA WILL BRING PERIODS OF RAIN TO THE WEST COAST. && .FIRE WEATHER... DRYING CONDITIONS ALONG WITH WARMING TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED THROUGH THE WEEK...HOWEVER WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN LIGHT. && .HYDROLOGY... THE SURGE OF WATER AND ICE MOVING DOWN THE YUKON RIVER YESTERDAY REMAINED JAMMED AT A POINT ABOUT 20 MILES UP RIVER FROM FORT YUKON OVERNIGHT WHERE A FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT. FLOOD WATCHES FOR THE YUKON ARE HOISTED FOR BEAVER...STEVENS VILLAGE AND LOCATIONS DOWN RIVER TO TANANA. && .AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER STORM WARNING FOR AKZ207-AKZ208. FLOOD WATCH FOR AKZ220-AKZ221. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR AKZ201-AKZ202-AKZ209-AKZ217. BRISK WIND ADVISORY FOR PKZ200-PKZ210-PKZ220-PKZ225. && CCC MAY 13
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
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, May 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: 455500.