Ice Storm in Alaska, December 1 to 2, 2014

Name: Ice Storm in Alaska, December 1 to 2, 2014
Start: 2014-12-01T07:36
End: 2014-12-02T18:56
Location: Alaska

December 1 to 2, 2014 · NWS AFG · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

An occlusion moved north over southwest Alaska on the 1st and 2nd and brought a period of freezing rain to several locations. 32 inches, likely all as rain during the event.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

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.

An occlusion moved north over southwest Alaska on the 1st and 2nd and brought a period of freezing rain to several locations.

Zone 214 - Saint Marys AWOS received 0.24 inch of rain and the Reindeer River Remote Automated Weather Station received 0.32 inches, likely all as rain during the event.

Zone 215 - Holy Cross AWWS received approximately 0.12 inches of rain.

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 Dec 1, 5:24 AM AKST, 2 hours 12 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 1, 5:24 AM AKST, 2 hours 12 minutes before

NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK
524 AM AKST MON DEC 1 2014

.DISCUSSION...
MODELS INITIALIZED WELL AND CONTINUE TO PERFORM WELL IN THE SHORT
AND MID TERM. EXPECTED LEVELS OF MODEL SPREAD ENTER THE PICTURE BY
THE END OF THE WEEK.

ONGOING WINTER STORM CONTINUES TO IMPACT THE WEST COAST SOUTH OF
THE SEWARD PENINSULA WITH WINTER STORM WARNINGS FOR FREEZING RAIN
IN ZONES 212...214...AND 215. FREEZING RAIN ADVISORY REMAINS IN
EFFECT FOR ST LAWRENCE ISLAND.

A 972 MB LOW OVER IN THE WESTERN BERING SEA NEAR 60N AND 170W
WITH A STRONG FRONT EXTENDING EAST THROUGH THE BERING STRAIT AND
THEN SOUTHEAST TO NEAR PAMC CONTINUES TO MOVE TO THE NORTH AND
EAST. WARM TONGUE ALOFT CONTINUES TO ADVANCE NORTH AND EAST OVER
THE YK DELTA WITH 850 MB TEMPERATURES IN THE 0 TO PLUS 3 RANGE.
WIDESPREAD SNOW HAS MIXED WITH FREEZING RAIN AND CHANGED TO RAIN
OVER MUCH OF THE LOWER YK DELTA. EXPECTING SIGNIFICANT ICE
ACCUMULATION IN THE .1 TO .3 INCH RANGE IN THE WARNED AREAS.
EXPECTING LESS FREEZING RAIN FURTHER EAST WITH A TRANSITION TO
ALL SNOW FROM PAMC EAST.

A MOIST SOUTHWEST TO WEST FLOW DEVELOPS MONDAY OVER THE WESTERN
INTERIOR AND WILL EXTEND TO PFYU INTO TUESDAY AND EXTENDS FROM
BOUNDARY LAYER TO NEAR 500 HP. MOISTURE WILL CONTINUE TO FEED TO
THE EAST AND NORTHEAST ALONG THE BACK OF A FLATTENED UPPER LEVEL
RIDGE CENTERED OVER THE SOUTHERN INTERIOR. AN ELONGATED LOW
PRESSURE SYSTEM DEVELOPS OVER THE WESTERN INTERIOR TUESDAY AND
WILL FEED A WIDE SWATH OF HEAVY SNOW STRETCHING FROM THE LOWER YK
DELTA NORTHEAST TO PYFU. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW IN ZONE
216 WAS UPGRADED TO WSW FOR EXPECTED STORM TOTALS IN THE 6 TO 12
INCH RANGE. SIMILAR STORM TOTALS ARE EXPECTED OVER ZONES
216...219...220...221 AND 222. WINTER STORM WATCHES WERE UPGRADED
TO WARNINGS FOR THESE AREAS.

GALE FORCE EASTERLY WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO BECOME NORTHEAST TONIGHT
AND NORTHERLY TUESDAY AND WILL ALLOW 6 TO 10 FOOT WAVES TO BREAK
NEAR THE NORTH SHORE OF ST LAWRENCE ISLAND AND WILL PUSH A 1 TO 2
FOOT SURGE ONTO SHORE. HOISTED HIGH SURF ADVISORY FOR ST LAWRENCE
ISLAND.

COASTAL HAZARD POTENTIAL DAYS 3 AND 4...NONE

&&

.AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
HIGH SURF ADVISORY FOR AKZ213.

WINTER STORM WARNING FOR AKZ212-AKZ214-AKZ215-AKZ216-AKZ219-
AKZ220-AKZ221-AKZ222.

FREEZING RAIN ADVISORY FOR AKZ213.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR AKZ227.

HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY WARNING FOR PKZ220-PKZ225.

SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR PKZ220-PKZ225.

GALE WARNING FOR PKZ210.

BRISK WIND ADVISORY FOR PKZ200.
&&

CCC/ET DEC 14

Event by event

2 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Ice Storm, Yukon Delta

When: December 1, 7:36 AM AKST to 9:57 PM AKST
Where: Yukon Delta forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS

Ice Storm, Lower Yukon Valley

When: December 1, 3:56 PM AKST to December 2, 6:56 PM AKST
Where: Lower Yukon Valley forecast zone
Reported by: AWSS

What these are

Ice Storm: Freezing rain accumulating a quarter inch or more of ice, or less where it caused significant damage.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Alaska in 2014 Every state in 2014 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, December 2014

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: 547954, 547953.