SE Alaska had been under a blocking ridge for three weeks. Finally, a weak front penetrated the ridge on 3/9, but no big deal weatherwise.
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 AJK wrote it up.
SE Alaska had been under a blocking ridge for three weeks. Finally, a weak front penetrated the ridge on 3/9, but no big deal weatherwise. Next, a slammer of a front moved across the Gulf and made landfall early on the morning of 3/10 and across the Panhandle during the day. First, there were strong winds everywhere. Next, it dumped snow on Hyder. There were thunderstorms on the west side of Baranof Island. No damage reported so far other than a few tree branches down, and big time snow removal at Hyder and Stewart, B.C.
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 Juneau, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 10, 5:22 AM AKST, 38 minutes earlier.
Southeast Alaska Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Juneau AK
622 AM AKDT Sun Mar 10 2019
.SYNOPSIS...A gale force front moves ashore across Southeast
Alaska today. A much weaker front moves into region this evening.
A third front tracks across the gulf and Panhandle Monday night.
&&
.SHORT TERM...Winds began rising across the Panhandle yesterday
evening and have continued to strengthen through the night. Gusts
of 40 to 50 mph have already been observed from Skagway to Juneau
to Ketchikan to Gustavus. As a 925 mb low level jet proceeds to
move onshore with the strongest winds sliding into the southern
Panhandle later this morning, we fully expect these winds to
continue to blow through the day. Two areas of more intense
scrutiny is Downtown Juneau and Ketchikan as 925 mb jet is still
offshore. As the front progresses inland, we feel that these more
exposed communities from the southeast could see more of a brunt
from high wind gusts. Thus we posted two high wind warnings for
gusts around 60 mph for these communities, with Juneau mainly for
this morning and Ketchikan from mid-morning through the entire
afternoon.
Rain amounts look to be the heaviest today with showers overall
less intense behind the front. Amounts should be very high, but
higher than what Southeast has seen in quite awhile, and very
beneficial for the region. Better news is that continued onshore
flow through the short-term period and somewhat promises that
contrary to the last couple of weeks, we should not lose any more
ground in the battle against the drought, and hopefully we can
make up some. Given a region of deeper instability spreading
eastward from the gulf, we still carry a slight risk of
thunderstorms along the eastern gulf coast. While we did not
extend it northwest, the threat area realistically could include
Yakutat mid-day. Temperatures still look mild enough at sea level
for mainly rain.
Forecast confidence is generally good for synopics. Most focus was
directed towards today's front and the probability of high winds
for exposed portions of Ketchikan and Juneau.
.LONG TERM.../ Tuesday to Sunday / as of 10 pm Saturday. Showers
will be tapering off Tuesday after a trough of lower pressure at
surface and aloft moves eastward over the panhandle. Most of the
showers should be in rain form, although there could be snow or a
mix in the northern sections of the inner channels. Snow fall is
not anticipated to more than light amounts.
A quick moving ridge is expected to move from the gulf into
British Columbia at the surface and aloft. This ridge is being
move by a front associated with a strong low headed north to east
of Kodiak Island Wednesday afternoon. The front with likely Gale
force winds will impact the eastern coastal waters. The front has
the look of another warm system so expect much of the panhandle to
see rain Wednesday and Thursday. The northern panhandle and
higher elevations there could have the precipitation as snow.
Longer range solutions as expected have a different set of
solutions based on strength of a system that at the moment looks
to be headed to the southern panhandle area. Confidence is average
for better through the Wednesday system then slightly below headed
to the end of the week.
&&
.AVIATION...Strong low level wind shear will plague aviation
concerns today, so it should be bumpy for aircraft. Ceilings and
visibility should remain around MVFR conditions, but brief periods
of IFR are certainly a possibility.
&&
.MARINE...Widespread gales and small crafts will steadily expire
this afternoon into this evening. However, very high seas will
develop through Monday over the outer gulf waters.
&&
.AJK Watches/Warnings/Advisories...
PUBLIC...Strong Wind until 1 PM AKDT this afternoon for AKZ026.
Strong Wind through this evening for AKZ027.
High Wind Warning until 1 PM AKDT this afternoon for AKZ025.
Strong Wind until 10 AM AKDT this morning for AKZ020-022-023.
Strong Wind until 10 AM AKDT this morning for AKZ021.
High Wind Warning until 6 PM AKDT this evening for AKZ028.
Strong Wind until 4 PM AKDT this afternoon for AKZ019.
Winter Weather Advisory until 1 PM AKDT this afternoon for
AKZ018.
Strong Wind until 7 AM AKDT this morning for AKZ017.
MARINE...Gale Warning for PKZ011>013-021-022-031>036-041>043-051-052.
Small Craft Advisory for PKZ053.
&&
JWA/Bezenek
Visit us at http://www.weather.gov/Juneau2 high wind, 1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Very windy all around Juneau including the Valley on 3/10. Gusts to 67 mph at the AML dock at 0952. Gust to 66 mph at the AJ dock at 0842. Juneau Federal Building 60 mph at 0450. Plenty of sustained winds 45 to 60 mph. No damage reported so far.
Storm total snow measured on 3/11 at 0900 was 27.5 inches in 24 hours ending at midnight 3/11. Impact was intense snow removal.
On 3/10 Salmon landing in downtown Ketchikan recorded 73 KT gusts at 1423. The tide gauge on the cruise ship docks recorded 67 KT at 1112. No damage has been reported so far.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alaska in 2019Every state in 2019This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, March 2019
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: 800666, 800651, 800654.