Short shortwave passing across area with solid cold air advection behind and a well-defined critical level passing this evening caused high winds in the Juneau area, particularly Downtown, Douglas, and Lemon Creek.
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.
Short shortwave passing across area with solid cold air advection behind and a well-defined critical level passing this evening caused high winds in the Juneau area, particularly Downtown, Douglas, and Lemon Creek.
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 Apr 11, 2:55 PM AKST, 1 hour 5 minutes earlier.
Southeast Alaska Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Juneau AK
355 PM AKDT Mon Apr 11 2022
.SHORT TERM...The big story of the week continues to be the N-NE
outflow winds and low POP. At the surface, an inverted trough
remains extended northward over the southern inside waters while
higher pressure lies in the Yukon. An upper level low is sending
bands of vorticity over the central and southern Coast Mtns which
has enhanced winds through interior passes, but also created some
clouds and isolated showers from Hyder to Metlakatla. This low
will track from Northern B.C. southward over the Coast Mtns, then
to the southern outside waters/Dixon Entrance area this evening.
As a result, winds aloft will become more NELY starting this
evening and the isolated mixed showers will pass over POW, then
offshore.
That cross barrier flow is one of the main components of Taku Mtn
wave winds for downtown Juneau (and likely other places). Other
ingredients are the critical level around 500mb (which the low aloft
also allows for) and an inversion, which downslope/subsidence
creates but is the weakest of the 3 elements. For these reasons, a
High Wind Warning for Juneau was issued earlier today for gusts of
60-70mph, peaking in the evening. This includes Lemon Creek, the
airport, and downtown, but the strongest of the winds would be in
the typical Taku wind areas of downtown/Douglas. Hires models are
indicating winds at 925mb of 65-70kt (75-81mph) over downtown
Juneau, so there is potential for some gusts to be even stronger.
Outside of Juneau, strong winds (gusts >40mph) have been measured
across much of the panhandle and through the inside waters. These
winds (and due to the much colder air aloft) are evident by the
ocean effect clouds streets seen on visible satellite. Gales are
occurring near outflow areas and a persistent north wind likely has
seas elevated above the typical 5:1 ratio. Expect these conditions
to continue tonight, then start a slow diminishing trend through
Tuesday.
.LONG TERM.../Wednesday through Saturday night/...Partly cloudy
skies becoming more cloudy late in the week, diminishing late-
season outflow winds, and a much wider temperature range are the
top stories for the period.
Aloft, SE AK continues to be under the western side of a broad
long wave trough, which is helping to block systems from reaching
the area. Through the second half of the week, energy moving
downstream of the area will see the left section of said trough
deepen over the area, even as the rest of the trough starts to
weaken. This will continue to encourage higher pressure in the
lower levels, with ridging evident over the gulf at 850 mb per
models through the second half of the week.
The pressure gradient will continue to weaken through the second
half of the week, resulting in winds remaining on an overall
diminishing trend through the time period. Synoptic flow could
prove sufficient to turn winds in the inner channels out of the S
towards the end of the week, though diverging model guidance makes
this hard to say with a high degree of confidence.
Temperatures look to be much cooler for nighttime lows and around
average for this time of year for daytime highs. This is due to
anticipated strong radiational cooling at night due to the
absence of cloud cover.
Precipitation does not look to be a significant concern for the
period. The area looks to remain dry until the end of the week,
when a system may try to move over the low level ridging in the
gulf. Do not expect this to bring significant precipitation at
this time, though showers in some locations cannot be ruled out.
Clear to partly cloudy skies look to prevail through Thursday
night.
Forecast confidence is above average through Thursday before
diminishing from Friday onwards as guidance becomes increasingly
uncertain.
&&
&&
.AJK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...Strong Wind until 7 PM AKDT this evening for AKZ020-024-026.
High Wind Warning until 6 AM AKDT Tuesday for AKZ025.
Strong Wind from Tuesday morning through Tuesday afternoon for
AKZ025.
Strong Wind through late tonight for AKZ022.
Strong Wind until 1 AM AKDT Tuesday for AKZ018-023.
Strong Wind through late tonight for AKZ019.
MARINE...Gale Warning for PKZ012-013-021-022-032-033-041>043-051.
Small Craft Advisory for PKZ011-031-034>036.
&&
Ferrin/GFS
Visit us at http://www.weather.gov/Juneau1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Alaska Marine Lines dock weather station reported wind speeds up to 77 mph in this Taku Wind event. Widespread reports in the 60s and 70s occurred across downtown Juneau weather stations. Power outages and damage to an outdoor bar were reported.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Alaska in 2022Every state in 2022This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, April 2022
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: 1023648.