Avalanche, Ne. Slopes of the Ern Ak Rng
- When
- December 6, 1:30 PM AKST to 1:35 PM AKST
- Where
- Ne. Slopes of the Ern Ak Rng forecast zone
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Reported by
- Newspaper
Avalanche in Alaska, December 6, 2014
A 35 year-old man perished in an avalanche on the 6th, two and a half miles east of the Richardson Highway in the Alaska Range, approximately 60 miles south of Delta Junction. He had been skiing in the back country with another man, who was also caught in the avalanche, but survived.
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- 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 35 year-old man perished in an avalanche on the 6th, two and a half miles east of the Richardson Highway in the Alaska Range, approximately 60 miles south of Delta Junction. He had been skiing in the back country with another man, who was also caught in the avalanche, but survived.
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 6, 12:27 PM AKST, 1 hour 3 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Dec 6, 12:27 PM AKST, 1 hour 3 minutes before
NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK 1227 PM AKST SAT DEC 6 2014 .DISCUSSION... ALOFT...A 504DM LOW LOCATED 100 NM SOUTH OF COLD BAY WILL CONTINUE TO WEAKEN AND MOVE TO THE SOUTHEAST AS AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE OVER SOUTHEAST ALASKA BUILDS NORTHWEST INTO CENTRAL ALASKA SUNDAY AND MONDAY. A SERIES OF WEAK UPPER LEVEL LOWS WILL MOVE NORTHWEST ALONG THE BACK OF THE UPPER LEVEL RIDGE FROM THE GULF OF ALASKA INTO THE SOUTHEAST BERING SEA. THE FIRST WEAK UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL MOVE INTO BRISTOL BAY SUNDAY AFTERNOON. PRECIP AHEAD OF THE FRONT WILL MOVE INTO THE LOWER YK DELTA SUNDAY. 1 TO 2 INCHES OF SNOW EXPECTED WITH THIS SYSTEM AS IT MOVES TO THE NORTHWEST. FORECAST SOUNDINGS INDICATE POSSIBILITY OF BRIEF PERIOD OF LIGHT FREEZING RAIN WITH THIS SYSTEM IN THE LOWER YK DELTA. A WEAK SHORTWAVE MOVES NORTHWEST ALONG THE UPPER LEVEL RIDGE MONDAY MORNING INTO THE SOUTHERN INTERIOR. ONLY LIGHT SNOW EXPECTED WITH THIS WAVE. FORECAST SOUNDINGS INDICATE POSSIBILITY OF LIGHT FREEZING RAIN IN THE ALASKA RANGE MONDAY MORNING. ANOTHER WEAK SHORTWAVE MOVES INTO THE EASTERN INTERIOR TUESDAY EVENING WITH ANOTHER ROUND OF LIGHT SNOW. MODERATE EASTERLY GRADIENT WILL CONTINUE TODAY AND TONIGHT OVER INTERIOR WITH WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES FOR BLOWING SNOW OVER SUMMITS CONTINUING THROUGH SUNDAY MORNING. GRADIENT DECREASES MONDAY AS SHORTWAVE PUSHES THROUGH. STRONG WINDS EXPECTED TO PICK UP ALONG THE NORTHWEST COAST AND WESTERN BROOKS RANGE THROUGH KOTZEBUE SOUND THIS AFTERNOON INTO MONDAY. STRONG WIND HEADLINES HOISTED FOR ZONE 207. MODELS INITIALIZED WELL AND EXHIBIT MINIMAL SPREAD IN THE SHORT TERM AS WELL AS THE MID TERM. LONG RANGE EXHIBITS EXPECTED SPREAD IN FEATURE STRENGTH AND POSITION. COASTAL HAZARD POTENTIAL DAYS 3 AND 4...NONE && .AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR AKZ219-AKZ220-AKZ221. HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY WARNING FOR PKZ210-PKZ220-PKZ225. GALE WARNING FOR PKZ210-PKZ220-PKZ225. BRISK WIND ADVISORY FOR PKZ200-PKZ220-PKZ230-PKZ245. && CCC DEC 14
Event by event
1 avalanche. Local standard time, as filed.
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avalanche, Ne. Slopes of the Ern Ak Rng | 2014-12-06 | 35 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
What these are
- Avalanche
- A mass of snow sliding down a mountainside that caused a death, an injury or damage.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Heavy Rain in West Virginia, December 6, 2014
- Winter Weather in Montana, December 6, 2014
- Flash Flooding in California, December 6, 2014
- Dense Fog in Texas, December 6 to 7, 2014
- High Wind in Montana, December 6 to 9, 2014
- Damaging Wind in Alabama, December 6, 2014
- Coastal Flood in South Carolina, December 6, 2014
- Flood in West Virginia, December 6, 2014
- Dense Fog in Oklahoma, December 6 to 7, 2014
More
Every storm in Alaska in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings 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: 547724.