Name: Blizzard in Alaska, February 15 to 16, 2014
Start: 2014-02-15T21:23
End: 2014-02-16T20:00
Location: Alaska

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.

A strong 1043 mb high pressure centered over the Arctic coupled with a low pressure center in the central Bering Sea produced strong winds and blowing snow and local blizzard conditions for several locations over western Alaska during the 16th and 17th.

Zone 207: Blizzard conditions were observed at Point Hope. The visibility was reduced to one quarter mile or less in blowing snow. There was a peak wind gust of 54 kt (62 mph) at the Point Hope AWOS.

Zone 213: Blizzard conditions were observed at Wales. The visibility was reduced to one quarter mile or less in blowing snow. There was a peak wind gust of 46 kt (53 mph) at the Wales AWOS.

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 15, 3:08 PM AKST, 6 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 15, 3:08 PM AKST, 6 hours 15 minutes before

NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK
308 PM AKST SAT FEB 15 2014

.DISCUSSION...
MODELS IN FAIRLY GOOD AGREEMENT THROUGH 60 HOURS. UPPER LEVEL
TROUGH WILL REMAIN OVER CENTRAL ALASKA THROUGH ABOUT THE EARLY TO
MID PART OF NEXT WEEK. BUT 500 HEIGHTS WILL GRADUALLY RISE AND THE
MAIN FLOW ALOFT WILL SHIFT TO BE WELL SOUTH OF MAINLAND ALASKA.

THE SURFACE LOW OVER THE NORTHERN GULF OF ALASKA WILL CONTINUE TO
GRADUALLY FILL OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS WHILE THE HIGH IN THE HIGH
ARCTIC GRADUALLY SPREADS SOUTHWARD. THIS WILL KEEP THE PRESSURE
GRADIENT TIGHT OVER THE BROOKS RANGE AND ARCTIC SLOPE AREAS
THROUGH THE FIRST PART OF THE WEEK.

WRAP AROUND MOISTURE FROM THEN LOW IN THE GULF IS SPREADING
MOISTURE THROUGH THE INTERIOR AND ALL THE WAY TO THE WESTERN
INTERIOR. TEMPERATURES HAVE MODERATED WITH THE WARMER AIR MAKING
ITS WAY ACROSS NORTHERN ALASKA SOUTH OF THE BROOKS RANGE BUT
COLDER AIR WILL FILTER BACK DOWN INTO THE INTERIOR DURING THE WEEK.

EXPECT WIND CHILLS TO REMAIN AN ISSUE THROUGH THE BROOKS RANGE
PASSES THROUGH THE WEEKEND AND POSSIBLY INTO THE FIRST PART OF
NEXT WEEK.

&&

.AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WIND CHILL ADVISORY FOR AKZ201-AKZ202-AKZ203-AKZ204-AKZ205-
AKZ207-AKZ217-AKZ220.

WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR AKZ206-AKZ218.

GALE WARNING FOR PKZ210-PKZ220-PKZ225.
&&

CF FEB 14

Event by event

2 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.

Blizzard, St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait

When: February 15, 9:23 PM AKST to February 16, 2:00 AM AKST
Where: St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS

Blizzard, Chukchi Sea Coast

When: February 16, 3:06 AM AKST to 8:00 PM AKST
Where: Chukchi Sea Coast forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS

What these are

Blizzard: Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or more with falling or blowing snow that cuts visibility below a quarter mile for three hours or longer.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Alaska in 2014 Every state in 2014 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, February 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: 499430, 499424.