Coastal Flood and High Wind in Alaska, September 15 to 19, 2022

Name: Coastal Flood and High Wind in Alaska, September 15 to 19, 2022
Start: 2022-09-15T05:04
End: 2022-09-19T10:00
Location: Alaska

September 15 to 19, 2022 · NWS AFG · 11 events in 6 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 11

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS AFG wrote it up.

The remnants of Typhoon Merbok in the northern Pacific Ocean began approaching the Bering Sea on Thursday, September 15, 2022. This storm transitioned into an extra-tropical area of low pressure and strengthened as it traversed the Bering Sea from southwest to northeast. Impacts were first observed with high winds in the Central and Western Aleutians early on Friday, September 16th. The storm continued to move northeast and peaked in intensity on Friday with a minimum central pressure of 937 mb at 4:00 AM, which is the lowest pressure ever recorded in the Bering Sea for the month of September (data since 1950). More remarkably, it appears to have been the lowest pressure recorded for any time of year along portions of its track. The storm slowly weakened but remained very powerful as it moved through the Bering Strait on Saturday morning September 17th, taking a perfect track to bring significant coastal flooding to the northern Bering Sea coast. The storm continued to move northeast into the Chukchi Sea Saturday afternoon, September 17th and stalled out, gradually dissipating through Tuesday, September 20th over the Chukchi Sea.

The impacts on Friday were mainly over the Bering Sea and the Pribilof Islands in the form of high winds and seas. Buoy 46035 in the Bering Sea recorded wind gusts to 76 mph and seas of 52 feet Friday morning. By Friday evening, and into the weekend, the low moved towards the western Alaskan coastline, bringing high winds and near record storm surge.

What made this storm unusual was threefold: Storm strength, storm track, and the speed of its movement. As Merbok’s remnants approached the Bering Sea, an eastward transitioning disturbance reinforced the storm’s strength by infusing its energy into Merbok’s remnants, while merging cold, dry air aloft (pulled from continental east Asia), with the tropical surface air below. This interaction increased the storm’s strength exponentially, while facilitating the storm’s extra-tropical transition. While it is common to get Hurricane-Force winds during the Fall and Winter in these extra-tropical systems, the strength of the storm was historic for the month of September. Additionally, the Bering Sea’s strongest storms typically occur when there is some sea ice present to buffer and protect the coastline from wave action. In September, there is no sea ice in the Bering or Chukchi Seas, leaving the coastline vulnerable to wind driven waves, along with the storm surge.

Also of note were the storm’s track and speed of movement. Merbok tracked from the Southwest Bering Sea in a nearly straight line into the Bering Strait at a speed that induced a dynamic fetch. This means that the storm moved at the same speed as the waves it was generating, causing winds to continue to build the same areas of high seas, thus resulting in sea heights over 50 feet. The straight line of the track to the Bering Strait meant that these huge seas, once generated, were sustained by the storm until it deposited these seas into the Western Alaska Coastline. This is what caused the record breaking storm surge at some locations

The first impacts were observed late Thursday afternoon, September 15th, as the storm entered the Bering Sea over the western Aleutians. Wind gusts to 81 mph were reported at Adak early Friday morning. During the later morning hours on Friday, September 16th, a buoy (46035) located west of the Pribilof Islands in the Bering Sea, recorded a series of strong wind gusts. As the storm continued to track northeastward throughout the day, deteriorating weather conditions reached the Pribilof Islands by the afternoon on Friday, September 16th. For the majority of the Western and Central Aleutians, and the Pribilof Islands, the greatest weather impacts were due to damaging winds, and steered marine traffic away from the area.

By early Friday evening, the leading frontal boundary associated with the low arrived over the Yukon and Kuskokwim Delta Coast. Impacts, including damaging wind gusts and storm surge, were observed from the Kuskokwim Delta to the Yukon Delta, as well as farther inland. Storm surge also pushed inland along the Yukon Delta, flooding several communities along the Yukon River. Wind gusts along the coast gusted over 60 mph in several communities with a peak gust of 91 mph reported at Cape Romanzof west of Scammon Bay.

As the storm center reached the Bering Strait on Saturday morning, strong southwest winds pushed a significant storm surge into Norton Sound and the southern Seward Peninsula. Major coastal flooding and severe erosion developed with some communities experiencing the worst flooding in nearly 50 years. Storm surge levels peaked on Saturday, September 17th across the northern Bering Sea but water levels remained at or above flood stage for an additional 12 to 24 hours in some communities.

The storm gradually weakened, slowing its northeasterly movement dramatically as it entered the Chukchi Sea on Saturday September 17th, eventually moving to just west of Point Hope on Sunday September 18th, where it continued to weaken in place through Tuesday September 20th. Due to the weakening of the storm when it moved north of the Bering Strait, impacts were not as severe for communities along the Chukchi Sea coast, with less significant erosion observed and minor flooding. Storm surge levels in the Chukchi Sea peaked on Sunday September 18th.

What forecasters said that day

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 Fairbanks, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 15, 4:45 AM AKST, 19 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 15, 4:45 AM AKST, 19 minutes before

<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

Event by event

6 coastal flood, 5 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Coastal Flood, Ern Norton Sound Nulato Hills

When: September 15, 5:04 AM AKST to September 19, 10:00 AM AKST
Where: Ern Norton Sound Nulato Hills forecast zone
Reported by: Emergency Manager

The extratropical remnants of Typhoon Merbok moved north through the Bering Sea from Thursday September 15th to Saturday September 17th. Strong south to southwest winds resulted in a significant storm surge that caused water levels to rise from 8 to 18 feet above the normal high tide line, with the highest water levels observed in Norton Bay from Elim to Koyuk. This resulted in major coastal flooding at some communities. Fish camps and other structures along the coast used for hunting and gathering activities were damaged or destroyed across the region.

At Elim, it is estimated that water levels peaked at 14 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday afternoon but remained elevated into Sunday afternoon. Major flooding and erosion occurred in parts of the village and to the east at Moses Point.

At Koyuk, it is estimated that water levels peaked at 16 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday afternoon but remained elevated into Sunday afternoon. Major flooding and erosion occurred in parts of the village with at least one home lifted off the foundation.

At Shaktoolik, it is estimated that water levels peaked at 12 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday afternoon but remained elevated into Sunday afternoon. Moderate flooding and erosion occurred in parts of the village. Storm surge and wave runup destroyed much of the berm that protects the village from flooding, erosion damaged some roads in the village, and water pushed debris onto the west end of the runway and damaged the runway lights.

At Unalakleet, water levels peaked at 10.0 feet above Mean Higher High Water at 7AM AKDT on Saturday. Moderate flooding of low lying areas and erosion from wave runup occurred in parts of the village. Storm surge and wave runup damaged most the protective beach berm, water pushed debris on the airport ramp area, and water inundated low lying areas on the lagoon side of the village.

At St. Michael, it is estimated that water levels peaked around 8 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday afternoon but remained elevated into Sunday morning. Minor flooding occurred in parts of the village.

At Stebbins, it is estimated that water levels peaked around 10 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday afternoon but remained elevated into Sunday morning. Major flooding and erosion occurred in parts of the village. Coastal flooding caused damage to the local school, where water pipes were damaged. Two houses sustained minor damage.

High Wind, Yukon Delta

When: September 16, 2:00 PM AKST to September 17, 4:00 AM AKST
Where: Yukon Delta forecast zone
Measured: 79 kt (91 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS

The remnants of Typhoon Merbok brought high winds to the Yukon Delta beginning the afternoon of the 16th. The strongest winds were observed at Cape Romanzof which saw gusts as high as 91 mph. Other peak wind gusts in the Yukon Delta included 67 mph at Hooper Bay, 64 mph at the Reindeer River RAWS, 56 mph at Chevak, 54 mph at Scammon Bay, 53 mph at Marshall and 53 mph at St Marys. It should be noted that several of the aforementioned sites actually stopped reporting in the middle of the event potentially resulting in values being under reported. High winds caused rooves to peel off several structures in both Hooper Bay and Chevak. The FM radio tower in Chevak collapsed due to the strong winds.

High Wind, Chukchi Sea Coast

When: September 16, 3:00 PM AKST to September 17, 11:00 PM AKST
Where: Chukchi Sea Coast forecast zone
Measured: 58 kt (67 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Mesonet

The extratropical remnants of Typhoon Merbok brought high winds to the Chukchi Sea Coast beginning on the afternoon and continuing during the day on the 17th. Red Dog Dock saw gusts as high as 67 mph. Elsewhere, Kivalina saw gusts to 46 mph and Point Hope saw gusts to 47 mph.

High Wind, St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait

When: September 16, 6:00 PM AKST to September 17, 12:00 PM AKST
Where: St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait forecast zone
Measured: 58 kt (67 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS

The extratropical remnants of Typhoon Merbok brought high winds to St. Lawrence Island and the Bering Strait Coast. The Tin City airstrip saw wind gusts as high as 67 mph. Elsewhere, Teller saw gusts to 64 mph, Wales saw gusts to 59 mph, Bervig Mission saw gusts to 58 mph and Savoonga saw gusts to 48 mph.

Coastal Flood, St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait

When: September 16, 6:00 PM AKST to September 19, 6:00 AM AKST
Where: St Lawrence Is. Bering Strait forecast zone
Reported by: Emergency Manager

The extratropical remnants of Typhoon Merbok moved north through the Bering Sea from Thursday September 15th to Saturday September 17th. Strong south to southwest winds resulted in a significant storm surge that caused water levels to rise from 3 to 8 feet above the normal high tide line. This resulted in minor coastal flooding and erosion. Some fish camps and other structures along the coast used for hunting and gathering activities were damaged or destroyed across the region.

At Teller, it is estimated that water levels peaked at 6 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday night but remained elevated into Sunday evening. Coastal erosion and minor flooding occurred in low lying areas in the community.

At Brevig Mission, it is estimated that water levels peaked Saturday but remained elevated into Sunday evening. Coastal erosion and minor flooding occurred in low lying areas in the community.

At Wales, it is estimated that water levels peaked around 6 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday but remained elevated into Sunday morning. Coastal erosion and minor flooding occurred in low lying areas in the community.

At Little Diomede, it is estimated that water levels peaked around 5 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday morning but remained elevated into Sunday morning. Coastal erosion and minor flooding occurred in low lying areas in the community.

At Savoonga, coastal erosion and minor flooding occurred in low lying areas in the community.

At Gambell coastal erosion and minor flooding occurred in low lying areas in the community.

Coastal Flood, Yukon Delta

When: September 16, 6:00 PM AKST to September 19, 10:00 AM AKST
Where: Yukon Delta forecast zone
Reported by: Tribal Official

The extratropical remnants of Typhoon Merbok moved north through the Bering Sea from Thursday September 15th to Saturday September 17th. Strong south to southwest winds resulted in a storm surge that caused water levels to rise from 5 to 9 feet above the normal high tide line causing major coastal flooding. Fish camps and other structures along the coast used for hunting and gathering activities were damaged or destroyed across the region.

Major flooding was observed in the village Hooper Bay with water levels peaking around 9 feet above the normal high tide level early Saturday morning and remaining high into Sunday. Flooding caused damage to the village power grid causing a long term outage. This power outage resulted in significant food loss for the village. Three homes floated off of their foundations, one of which was a complete loss. Flooding inundated the fuel storage tank farm causing one tank to tip over and a minor fuel spill to occur. Flooding caused damage to the bridge to the town evacuation site. Flooding also caused disruption to the village drinking water supply.

Major flooding was observed in the village of Scammon Bay, with the water levels peaking around 7.5 feet above the normal high tide line early Saturday, with water levels remaining high into Sunday. A significant portion of the village runway was flooded. The flooding caused erosion damage to the west end of the runway. Significant damage was done to the village dock and significant erosion occurred in the village harbor.

Major flooding occurred in the village of Chevak, with water levels peaking early Saturday morning with water levels remaining high into Sunday. Flooding caused a third of the residents in the village to lose power. The storm caused most fishing boats in the community to sink. Several sheds and outbuildings floated away. The tower for the village FM radio station collapsed during the storm due to the combination of flooding and high winds. Flooding caused significant damage to the village store causing a significant loss of food. The village fuel storage area was breached by floodwaters causing a fuel spill. Flooding caused damage to airfield lights and other equipment at the airport.

Minor flooding occurred in the village of Nunam Iqua. Water levels peaked around 8 feet above the normal high tide line early Saturday morning, with water levels remaining high into Sunday. Water came up around most structures in the village; however only 2 homes had damage.

Minor flooding occurred in the village of Emmonak, with water levels peaking early Saturday morning and remaining high into Sunday. Erosion occurred along the riverbank, with debris piling up along in the village. Several fishing boats were damaged, with some a complete loss.

Minor flooding also occurred in the village of Alakanuk, peaking early Saturday morning.

Coastal Flood, Srn Seward Peninsula Coast

When: September 16, 6:00 PM AKST to September 19, 6:00 AM AKST
Where: Srn Seward Peninsula Coast forecast zone
Reported by: Emergency Manager

The extratropical remnants of Typhoon Merbok moved north through the Bering Sea from Thursday September 15th to Saturday September 17th. Strong south to southwest winds resulted in a significant storm surge that caused water levels to rise from 8 to 13 feet above the normal high tide line, with the highest water levels observed at Golovin. This resulted in major coastal flooding and the worst flooding in nearly 50 years. Fish camps and other structures along the coast used for hunting and gathering activities were damaged or destroyed across the region.

At Golovin, it is estimated that water levels peaked at 12.5 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday afternoon but remained elevated around Noon on Saturday. Water breached the berm which protects the community from high water and wind driven waves and storm surge also pushed in from the beach side of the village. Major flooding and erosion occurred in village with numerous structures damaged or destroyed. Several homes were lifted off their foundations and displaced, the old runway was completely inundated with over 6 feet of water, power was out in the community, and sand and other debris was washed up into the community. Also, since it was hunting season many people have lost meat and other traditionally collected foods due to flooding of freezers or the lack of power to keep freezers running.

At Nome, water levels peaked at 8.99 feet above Mean Higher High Water at 12PM AKDT on Saturday. Major flooding and erosion occurred in the community with some structures and roads along the coast damaged or destroyed. Storm surge and wave runup washed over Front Street and washed out the Nome-Council Road east of Nome Water also backed up the Snake River and flooded areas around some hangers, high water lifted a house into the Snake River and drifted into the bridge on the river.

High Wind, Srn Seward Peninsula Coast

When: September 16, 8:00 PM AKST to September 17, 12:00 PM AKST
Where: Srn Seward Peninsula Coast forecast zone
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS

The extratropical remnants of Typhoon Merbok brought high winds to the southern Seward Peninsula Coast Beginning the evening of the 16th and continuing into the morning of the 17th. Golovin saw gusts to 63 mph. Elsewhere, White Mountain saw gusts 60 mph while the peak wind at the Nome Airport was 56 mph.

Coastal Flood, Chukchi Sea Coast

When: September 17, 4:00 AM AKST to September 18, 8:00 PM AKST
Where: Chukchi Sea Coast forecast zone
Reported by: Tribal Official

At Shishmaref, it is estimated that water levels peaked at 6 feet above Mean Higher High Water Saturday evening but remained elevated into Sunday evening. Minor flooding occurred in low lying areas along the lagoon side of the village. Wave runup caused significant erosion along the road to the landfill south of of the runway.

At Kivalina, water levels peaked at 3.95 feet above Mean Higher High Water at 9AM AKDT on Sunday. Minor flooding of low lying areas and erosion from wave runup was observed.

High Wind, Ern Norton Sound Nulato Hills

When: September 17, 10:07 AM AKST to 8:29 PM AKST
Where: Ern Norton Sound Nulato Hills forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS

A measured gust of 52 kt was reported at Shaktoolik AWOS.

Coastal Flood, Baldwin Pen. & Selawik Valley

When: September 17, 8:00 PM AKST to September 19, 4:00 AM AKST
Where: Baldwin Pen. & Selawik Valley forecast zone
Reported by: Emergency Manager

The extratropical remnants of Typhoon Merbok moved north through the Chukchi Sea from Saturday September 17th to Sunday September 18th. Strong south to southwest winds resulted in a storm surge that caused water levels to rise from 4 to 6 feet above the normal high tide line. This resulted in coastal erosion and minor flooding of low lying areas. IN Kotzebue, water levels peaked at 4.35 feet above Mean Higher High Water at 3AM AKDT on Sunday September 18th. Kotzebue reported minor impacts from flooding including structures (unknown number) on the west side of the lagoon with water underneath them, high water impacting areas around the Lagoon Street boat ramp, and water up to the edge of the runway.

What these are

Coastal Flood: Flooding of coastal land by the sea, from storm surge, onshore wind or high tides.
High Wind: Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Alaska in 2022 Every state in 2022 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, September 2022

Sources

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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1058048, 1057716, 1057727, 1057720, 1058049, 1058050, 1058051, 1057726, 1058576, 1058046, 1058593.