A Winter storm that impacted Southeast Alaska at the end of 2021 continued into 2022. Winter storm warnings continued through this timeframe.
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 Winter storm that impacted Southeast Alaska at the end of 2021 continued into 2022. Winter storm warnings continued through this timeframe.
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 Dec 31, 11:23 PM AKST, 37 minutes earlier.
Southeast Alaska Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Juneau AK
1123 PM AKST Fri Dec 31 2021
.UPDATE...The colder air has proven much more resilient than
originally expected through the southern Inner Channels, so we
extended the winter storm warning through 6 AM. Latest 11 PM
observations have come in with the trend towards rain, but even so
nasty conditions out will make travel difficult. Elsewhere,
snowfall has trended on the wetter side, and the great originally
forecasted accumulations are more doubtful, but conditions still
warrant the warnings. We will receive further reports come
morning, aside from some calls to law enforcement and other
emergency management officials overnight.
&&
.PREV DISCUSSION......ISSUED AT ...344 PM AKST Fri Dec 31 2021
SHORT TERM.../Through Saturday Night/...The well advertised
winter storm started this morning with pre-frontal precipitation
in the form of snow across much of the panhandle. Yakutat picked
up a quick 6 inches of snow, but most areas received anywhere from
a dusting to 3 inches with the first round. Both Sitka and Port
Alexander have changed to rain, so the advisory there was
cancelled. Some areas through the Icy Strait corridor have seen a
distinct break in the precipitation intensity, but never fear,
there is more on the doorstep. As of 2pm, the main precipitation
shield is sitting just offshore, so expect precip rates to
increase through the afternoon hours. Warnings appear to still be
on track for tonight into tomorrow. A change from snow to rain is
still expected for the southern areas which will limit snowfall
totals.
As the parent surface low pressure moves from the northern gulf to
the south tomorrow, models are indicating banded precipitation
setting up over the central to southern panhandle. For this
forecast package included up to an additional 3 inches of
snowfall for Saturday night from areas near Petersburg to the
south. There is some uncertainty regarding when places that turned
to rain will change back to snow. There is also uncertainty as to
exactly where the band will set up, so this feature will continue
to be refined as new model data arrives.
Also in the Saturday night period, northerly winds begin to pick
up across the northern panhandle with models showing a 1050mb
high pressure over the Yukon, and with the low pressure to our
south, that sets up quite the pressure gradient. With the deep
layer of cold air in Canada, expect winds to be ramping up
Saturday night in the typical outflow areas (Downtown Juneau, Lynn
Canal, Taku, etc.) Winds and gusts were increased accordingly.
LONG TERM.../Sunday through Wednesday Night/ Lingering showers from the weekend
storm will continue to move out of the region on Sunday as high
pressure begins to establish itself in the Yukon. This high pressure
will be the main feature of the forecast period. As it builds, a
very strong pressure gradient will kick up the winds, mainly for
northern portions of the panhandle. To account for this, a High Wind
Watch has been issued for Downtown Juneau and Skagway. Strong winds
are also expected in Haines but confidence in reaching "High Wind"
criteria is lacking at this time. As further guidance becomes
available, will be better prepared to issue any headlines for there
and other locations if needed. Expect that this will also translate
to storm force winds through Lynn Canal with Gales and high end
small craft winds, mainly through N-S aligned channels, as you
travel further south. Arctic outflow around the high will also cause
a massive dip in the temperatures. Well below normal temperatures
are currently in the forecast for the entirety of next week with
several daily records potentially in Jeopardy. Extreme low
temperatures for the month of January appear to be safe at this
point (among observation sites with long established periods of
record) but the chance of setting such a benchmark somewhere is not
zero. Little to no PoP in the forecast means that the cold and the
wind are the forecast challenges. Since the snowfall will be ending
at approximately the beginning of the strongest winds, blowing snow
may become a travel concern for some locations. Another potential
hazard will be the combination of wind and frigid temperatures will
likely lead to wind chill concerns. As of now, the higher elevations
along the Klondike Hwy appear to be the most likely place to see
such issues, but regardless of weather or not advisory or warning
criteria are met, many locations will likely feel very uncomfortable
if outside for too long.
&&
.AJK WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...Winter Storm Warning until noon AKST Saturday for AKZ025-026.
Winter Storm Warning until 9 AM AKST Saturday for AKZ018>022-024.
High Wind Watch from late Saturday night through late Sunday
night for AKZ018-025.
Winter Storm Warning until 6 AM AKST Saturday for AKZ017-028.
Winter Storm Warning until 3 PM AKST Saturday for AKZ029.
MARINE...Gale Warning for PKZ031-034-036.
Small Craft Advisory for PKZ022-032-033-035-041>043-051>053.
&&
BFL/JDR
Visit us at http://www.weather.gov/JuneauPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JUNEAU AK
1131 PM AKST FRI DEC 31 2021
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1000 PM HEAVY SNOW 1 NE MENDENHALL VALLEY 58.38N 134.57W
12/31/2021 M6.0 INCH JUNEAU AK NWS EMPLOYEE
CLEARED DRIVEWAY OF ESTIMATED LESS THAN 2
INCHES OF SNOW AROUND 4PM. MEASURED 6 INCHES
OF NEW SNOW SHORTLY AFTER 10PM.
&&
GJSPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...SUMMARY...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JUNEAU AK
1151 PM AKST FRI DEC 31 2021
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0845 AM HEAVY SNOW 1 E YAKUTAT 59.55N 139.71W
12/31/2021 M6.0 INCH YAKUTAT AK TRAINED SPOTTER
A SPOTTER REPORTED THAT 6 INCHES OF NEW SNOW
ACCUMULATION HAS FALLEN. THERE IS CURRENTLY
A LULL IN THE PRECIPITATION.
0740 PM SNOW KETCHIKAN 55.36N 131.69W
12/31/2021 M3.0 INCH KETCHIKAN GATEWAY AK DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
MENTION HAD 3" DOWN WHERE HE LIVED. HEARD
THAT THE WALMART AREA MAY HAVE 4 TO 6
INCHES.
0930 PM HEAVY SNOW 1 SSW JUNEAU 58.29N 134.43W
12/31/2021 E7.8 INCH JUNEAU AK NWS EMPLOYEE
7.8 INCHES REPORTED AT WEST JUNEAU. LIGHT
WET SNOW STILL COMING DOWN WITH VISIBILITY
1-2 SM. 3.6 INCHES FELL BETWEEN 5AM-NOON,
4.2 INCHES FELL BETWEEN 3 PM AND 9:30 PM.
1000 PM HEAVY SNOW 1 NE MENDENHALL VALLEY 58.38N 134.57W
12/31/2021 M6.0 INCH JUNEAU AK NWS EMPLOYEE
CLEARED DRIVEWAY OF ESTIMATED LESS THAN 2
INCHES OF SNOW AROUND 4PM. MEASURED 6 INCHES
OF NEW SNOW SHORTLY AFTER 10PM.
0915 PM SNOW PELICAN 57.96N 136.23W
12/31/2021 M8.0 INCH HOONAH-ANGOON AK TRAINED SPOTTER
1130 PM HEAVY SNOW 7 SSE HAINES 59.15N 135.35W
12/31/2021 M12.0 INCH HAINES AK TRAINED SPOTTER
MUD BAY RECORDED 12 INCHES OF SNOW IN 18
HOURS. THREE INCHES FELL BETWEEN 5 AM AND
1:30 PM, AND 9 INCHES FELL BETWEEN 1:30 PM
AND 11:30 PM.
&&9 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Snowfall total from 3pm December 31st to 3pm January 1st was 11.1 inches of new snow.
General public reported 15.5 inches of snow has fallen from the event and has now switched over to rain.
A Trained spotter reported an estimated 8 inches of snow fell before precipitation transitioned to rain.
A Trained Spotter in Tenakee Springs estimated a full foot of snowfall from the system.
A Trained spotter in Pelican recorded 15.6 inches of snow from this storm system.
A trained spotter reported multiple trees snapped in Gustavus from snow and ice loading.
Haines COOP observer reported 11.8 inches of snowfall over the last 24 hours.
A trained spotter in Hyder reported 30 inches of snow from this storm system.
Estimated 22 to 25 inches of new snow from this storm. Multiple trees down, along with a city wide power outage. Long distance phone lines are also down with some structures collapsed due to snow loading.
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, January 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: 1005118, 1005120, 1005121, 1005122, 1005123, 1005124, 1005125, 1005126, 1005127.