High Wind, Ne. Slopes of the Ern Ak Rng
- When
- January 24, 6:33 AM AKST to 11:40 AM AKST
- Where
- Ne. Slopes of the Ern Ak Rng forecast zone
- Measured
- 74 kt (85 mph) measured gust
- Reported by
- Mesonet
High Wind in Alaska, January 24, 2014
A 976 mb low moved into the southern Bering Sea on the 24th of January. S.
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 3
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 976 mb low moved into the southern Bering Sea on the 24th of January. The associated warm front from this system moved north toward the Alaska Range, causing high winds at several locations:
Zone 223: Peak wind gust of 66 kt (76 mph) reported at the U.S. Army mesonet site named North Test Track in the late morning of the 24th.
Zone 224: Peak wind gust of 61 kt (70 mph) estimated by a spotter at Robertson River in the late morning of the 24th.
Zone 226: Peak wind gust of 74 kt (85 mph) reported at the U.S. Army mesonet site named Texas Condo.
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 Jan 24, 4:46 AM AKST, 1 hour 47 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 24, 4:46 AM AKST, 1 hour 47 minutes before
NORTHERN ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK 446 AM AKST FRI JAN 24 2014 .DISCUSSION... MODELS...RUN TO RUN CONTINUITY WITH THE SYSTEM WORKING UP THE WEST COAST HAS BEEN PRETTY GOOD. MODELS ARE STILL HAVING ISSUES ONCE THEY GET OUT PAST 48 HOURS AS THEY ALL SEEM TO HAVE DIFFERING IDEAS ON HOW TO HANDLE THE RIDGE ALOFT OVER THE MAINLAND AND THE TROUGH OVER THE BERING SEA. ALOFT...AT 500 HPA...510 DAM CLOSED LOW WILL OVER THE CENTRAL ALEUTIANS WILL MOVE NORTH TO OVER THE BERING STRAIT EARLY SATURDAY MORNING...THEN CONTINUE TO OVER THE HIGH ARCTIC BY SUNDAY MORNING. 540 HEIGHTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE RIDGE OVER THE MAINLAND WILL REACH AS FAR WEST AS THE NULATO HILLS IN THE WESTERN INTERIOR AND TO BARROW ON THE ARCTIC COAST BY SATURDAY MORNING. THE RIDGE WILL REMAIN IN PLACE INTO NEXT WEEK. RIDGE TILTS TO THE WEST CHANGING THE FLOW ACROSS THE STATE TO MORE NORTHWEST BEGINNING SATURDAY. AT 850 HPA...ZERO ISOTHERM PUSHES TO THE ARCTIC COAST THIS MORNING THEN RECEDES A LITTLE TO ONLY OVER THE INTERIOR TONIGHT BEFORE SURGING NORTH AGAIN SATURDAY TO ENCOMPASS THE WHOLE STATE IN TEMPERATURES ABOVE ZERO CELSIUS. NEAR RECORD 850 HPA TEMPERATURES OVER THE INTERIOR SUNDAY AND MONDAY MAY BE AS WARM AS 10.0 CELSIUS. SURFACE...979MB LOW NEAR ST GEORGE WILL MOVE NORTH THIS MORNING TO 100NM WEST OF NUNIVAK ISLAND...THEN CONTINUE NORTH TO 100NM WEST OF GAMBELL AT 995MB BY SATURDAY MORNING. A TROUGH EXTENDING NORTHEAST FROM THE LOW IS MOVING OVER THE INTERIOR THIS MORNING AND WILL CONTINUE TO WORK NORTH AND EAST THROUGH THE DAY. MODELS AGAIN DEVELOP A LEE SIDE LOW IN THE TROUGH THIS MORNING WHICH WILL ENHANCE PRECIPITATION POTENTIAL. CHINOOK WINDS TODAY WILL TAPER OFF THIS AFTERNOON...BUT YET ANOTHER WAVE WILL MOVE UP OVER THE AREA LATE SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY AFTERNOON BRINGING MORE CHINOOK WINDS...WARM AIR...AND THE POTENTIAL FOR FREEZING PRECIPITATION TO THE SOUTHWEST INTERIOR. ARCTIC COAST...WINDS ON A DOWNWARD TREND TODAY AS THE RIDGE IN THE HIGH ARCTIC RECEDES TO THE NORTH AND THE LOW ON THE WEST COAST PUSHES NORTH. SOME FREEZING RAIN POSSIBLE IN AKZ201 AND AKZ205 THIS TODAY AS THE WARM AIR SURGES NORTH. EXPECT SOME SNOW SHOWERS OTHERWISE. BLOWING SNOW WILL DIMINISH THROUGH THE DAY. WEST COAST AND WESTERN INTERIOR...PERIODS OF FREEZING RAIN UP THE COAST AGAIN TODAY AS SHORTWAVE WORK NORTH WITH THE LOW. NORTHEAST WINDS TURNING SOUTHEAST AS THE LOW MOVES NORTH. ANOTHER BREAK BEHIND THIS LOW BEFORE WARMER CONDITIONS SURGE NORTH BRINGING ANOTHER ROUND OR FREEZING RAIN...RAIN...AND SNOW TO THE AREA SATURDAY INTO SUNDAY. INTERIOR...ANOTHER LEE SIDE LOW DEVELOPING THIS MORNING WILL BRING ANOTHER ROUND OF FREEZING RAIN TO THE INTERIOR. EXPECT IT WILL BE SHORT LIVED WITH LESS THAN ONE TENTH OF ICE ACCUMULATION IN ANY ONE AREA. AT LEAST SPRINKLES IN THE FAIRBANKS AREA IF NOT A PERIOD OF FREEZING RAIN THIS MORNING. WINDS CONTINUE TO BE STRONG THROUGH THE ALASKA RANGE SO NOT EXPECTING MUCH PRECIPITATION THERE. THIS LOOKS TO BE THE END OF THE FREEZING RAIN FOR THE TIME BEING AS THE RIDGE TILTS MORE TO THE WEST CREATING A NORTHWEST FLOW ACROSS THE STATE. && .AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WIND ADVISORY FOR AKZ223-AKZ225-AKZ226. FREEZING RAIN ADVISORY FOR AKZ205-AKZ207-AKZ208-AKZ209-AKZ210- AKZ217-AKZ219-AKZ220-AKZ221-AKZ222-AKZ223-AKZ224-AKZ225-AKZ226. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR AKZ201-AKZ202-AKZ203-AKZ211-AKZ212- AKZ213-AKZ214-AKZ215-AKZ216-AKZ227. GALE WARNING FOR PKZ230. BRISK WIND ADVISORY FOR PKZ200-PKZ210-PKZ220-PKZ225-PKZ235- PKZ240-PKZ245. && SDB JAN 14
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Jan 24, 2:05 AM AKST, 4 hours 28 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK 205 AM AKST FRI JAN 24 2014 AKZ222-241800- MIDDLE TANANA VALLEY- INCLUDING...FAIRBANKS...FORT WAINWRIGHT...EIELSON AFB...ESTER... NORTH POLE...MOOSE CREEK...TWO RIVERS...FOX...CHATANIKA... CHENA HOT SPRINGS...SOURDOUGH CAMP 205 AM AKST FRI JAN 24 2014 FREEZING RAIN HAS BEGUN AT THE FAIRBANKS INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AND AT EIELSON AFB. FREEZING RAIN IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH THE MORNING COMMUTE. EXTREME CAUTION SHOULD BE USED DURING THE COMMUTE THIS MORNING.
Event by event
3 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
High Wind, Deltana and Tanana
- When
- January 24, 6:33 AM AKST to 12:00 PM AKST
- Where
- Deltana and Tanana forecast zone
- Measured
- 66 kt (76 mph) measured gust
- Reported by
- Mesonet
High Wind, Upr Tanana Vly Fortymile
- When
- January 24, 7:00 AM AKST to 11:40 AM AKST
- Where
- Upr Tanana Vly Fortymile forecast zone
- Measured
- 61 kt (70 mph) estimated gust
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
What these are
- High Wind
- Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- High Surf in California, January 24, 2014
- Cold in Illinois, January 24, 2014
- Winter Weather in Wisconsin, January 24 to 25, 2014
- High Wind in South Dakota, January 24, 2014
- Heavy Snow in Michigan, January 24 to 25, 2014
- Winter Storm in Michigan, January 24 to 25, 2014
- Lake-Effect Snow and Winter Weather in Michigan, January 24 to 26, 2014
- Frost and Freeze in Texas, January 24, 2014
- Cold in Kentucky, January 24, 2014
- High Wind in Wyoming, January 24, 2014
- High Surf in California, January 24 to 26, 2014
- Cold in Ohio, January 24, 2014
More
Every storm in Alaska in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, January 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: 491245, 491247, 491246.