A low moved across the southern Gulf of Alaska from the west. This was the second system to affect Hyder within hours of another ending.
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.
A low moved across the southern Gulf of Alaska from the west. This was the second system to affect Hyder within hours of another ending.
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 Jan 4, 5:14 AM AKST, 2 hours 46 minutes earlier.
Southeast Alaska Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Juneau AK
514 AM AKST Sat Jan 4 2020
.SHORT TERM...Cold air generally in place over the panhandle, so
expect precipitation to fall as snow Saturday and Sunday. There
could be some rain mixed in or pockets off all rain for the
southeastern marine zones, or parts of the coastals land zones.
made some minor adjustments based on the GFS solution.
A trough/front is stretched out east-west over the gulf and will
start to move northward into the southern panhandle. The front
may act more as a collection of showers organized in a band,
however for now will call the the preciptiation type stratiform. The
outer coast looks to get their big burst of shower precip early
Saturday. while the Ketchikan area should see it until late
afternoon and evening. Those areas look pick up 2 to 5 inches in
about 6 to 9 hour period so going with Winter Advisory during
respective times. The Hyder area again will likely get snow from
about midday to Sunday morning and that could be a foot or more of
additional snow. The front lifts north in the north central
panhandle with the band stalled over the Misty Fjords region.
Sunday will see some light precipitation from the south and a weak
front moving east across the north central gulf. The far northern
panhandle could just stay cool and dry.
.LONG TERM...Tuesday through Saturday...as of 9 PM Fri...Model
solutions in fair agreement with low over the NW gulf gradually
filling through midweek before drifting into the E gulf and
dissipating as a stronger low moves into the SW gulf late in the
week. Upper flow will remain WSW over most of the gulf with models
indicating active weather with several lows moving across the S
gulf into the panhandle for the first half of the week. Model
solutions continue to show significant spread and poor run to run
consistency to identify any one impactful system at this time.
However, the consensus of active weather with near normal to
slightly below normal temps prevailing over most of the panhandle
through the period.
&&
.AJK Watches/Warnings/Advisories...
PUBLIC...Winter Weather Advisory until noon AKST today for AKZ027.
Winter Weather Advisory from 9 PM this evening to 3 AM AKST
Sunday for AKZ028.
Winter Storm Warning from 9 AM this morning to 6 AM AKST Sunday
for AKZ029.
MARINE...Small Craft Advisory for PKZ012-013-041>043-051-052.
&&
Bezenek/BC
Visit us at http://www.weather.gov/Juneau1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Hyder COOP Observer measured 12.4 inches of snow at their 9 am report on the 5th, snow had ended by the time or the report and fell in less than 24 hours. Stewart B.C. ASOS visibility was reduced to 1/4 mile in the late afternoon with heavy snow reported.
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, January 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: 869322.