Storm force front moved through the area with widespread strong to high winds, and cold temperatures in the upper elevations for heavy wet snow.
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.
Storm force front moved through the area with widespread strong to high winds, and cold temperatures in the upper elevations for heavy wet snow.
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 Feb 20, 5:48 AM AKST, 3 hours 37 minutes earlier.
Southeast Alaska Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Juneau AK
548 AM AKST Thu Feb 20 2020
.SHORT TERM...Upper level jet with a core of 140 kt aimed at
panhandle drifts southward through the day and weakens. The jet
had been driving the short wave supporting the surface front
across the gulf to the panhandle. The front moving through during
the day will support strong gusty winds from 40 to 60 mph. Have
posted a Warning for the Yakutat area this morning, and for the
Juneau area this afternoon. Most of the remainder of the panhandle
will have strong wind headlines this afternoon or evening.
Winds are expected to diminish tonight, though along the northern
canal and Skagway regions the stronger winds will continue
through tonight.
Precip starting as snow in the Yakutat area this morning but
should be shifting over to rain in the next couple of hours.
Across the panhandle, rain or a mix possible to start, that should
also transition to rain. Exception to the rain will be higher
elevations, where it should be snow. Have continued the Winter
Storm warning for heavy snow, and blowing snow in gusty winds
through the White Pass region of the Klondike Highway.
Calmer weather for Friday, with onshore flow and fairly widespread
showers. The cooler airmass will begin to move into the region in
earnest Friday so showers may be snow or a mix by later in the
day.
.LONG TERM.../Saturday through Thursday as of 10 pm Wednesday/
Rather complex and shifting pattern for the long range forecast.
Saturday starts out with a broad upper trough over Alaska with
the jet stream flowing through the northern Pacific into the
Southern Panhandle and Western BC. A small split flow pattern
develops in the jet W of Haida Gwaii Sat night with the northern
branch going over the northern panhandle and the stronger southern
branch heading into Vancouver Island. Feature proves to be very
transient as a ridge builds over the AK Peninsula then moves over
the Gulf Sun and Mon. At the surface, colder weather and snow
showers will be the norm over the weekend and early next week from
both the W onshore flow and some weak lows moving through as a
colder air mass moves in from the west. 850 mb temp forecast to be
negative 6 to negative 9C over the panhandle during this time but
the lower levels will be modified from its time spent over the
gulf before it gets here. Some snow accumulation is possible
during this time with varying amounts due to where the heavier
showers set up.
Beyond this point, guidance diverges past Mon on where the ridge
in the gulf early next week then moves with solutions ranging
from a cut off high over eastern Russia to more attached ridge
extending from the eastern gulf to the Arctic. Resulting weather
forecast is rather uncertain with differences in the upper ridge
position effecting how much cold air makes it to the panhandle
from the N late next week, and the timing of a strong front coming
up from the south at the same time. Currently, the GFS and ECMWF
are at odds with the GFS gunning for a weaker warmer Yukon high
with the front moving in by Tue, while the ECMWF favors more
substantial cold air that completely blocks any fronts from the
gulf making it to the panhandle until at least Thu. Ensemble and
WPC solutions have been favoring the warmer of the two
possibilities though they have been trending slower with the front
coming up from the south over the last few days. Favored the
ensemble and WPC for updates today.
&&
.AVIATION...Strong winds due to the frontal band. Expect some
widespread turbulence near terrain in the really strong winds.
Handful of locations also favorable to low level wind shear. The
moisture and lower freezing levels, there may be localized icing
to day as well. Situation improves after the front goes through
for the wind items, but Marginal clouds ( or lower) likely to
persist.
&&
.MARINE...Storm force winds along the outer coast and gales and
small craft winds for the inner channels as the incoming front
moves through the panhandle. Seas in the mid to upper teens
following the main frontal band.
&&
.AJK Watches/Warnings/Advisories...
PUBLIC...Strong Wind from noon AKST today through this evening for AKZ026-
027.
High Wind Warning from noon today to 6 PM AKST this evening for
AKZ025.
Strong Wind from 9 AM this morning to 3 PM AKST this afternoon
for AKZ022.
Strong Wind from 9 AM AKST this morning through this afternoon
for AKZ021-023.
Strong Wind from noon AKST today through this afternoon for
AKZ020.
Winter Storm Warning until 3 AM AKST Friday for AKZ018.
Strong Wind until 6 AM AKST early this morning for AKZ018.
High Wind Warning from 9 AM this morning to 3 PM AKST this
afternoon for AKZ017.
MARINE...Storm Warning for PKZ043-051-052.
Gale Warning for PKZ022-031>034-036-041-042-053.
Small Craft Advisory for PKZ012-013-021-035.
&&
Bezenek/EAL
Visit us at http://www.weather.gov/Juneau3 high wind, 2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Marine Exchange sensors in Downtown Juneau and the Mendenhall Valley measured peak gusts of 69 to 90 mph during the day on Feb 20th as a strong front moved through.
Skagway DOT reported 6 to 9 inches fell on the Klondike Highway between 8 mile and the border. The highway was closed at 1 PM on the 20th due to whiteout conditions and reopened the next day at noon. Blowing and drifting snow was observed at the pass.
Marine Exchange sensors at the Ketchikan Harbor measured peak gusts up to 77 mph into the evening on Feb 20th as a strong front moved through.
Yakutat airport ASOS measured a peak wind gust of 62 mph as a strong front moved through.
Haines Customs reported 9 inches of snow in their 7 AM morning report on Feb 21 with snow becoming heavy at about 1 PM the afternoon before.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alaska in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, February 2020
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: 869692, 869691, 869694, 869693, 869690.