Blizzard and Winter Storm in Alaska, March 1 to 2, 2023

Snow began in Yakutat in the afternoon of February 28th and continued to fall for the next two days. Around 8am on the 1st, WSO Yakutat estimated 6 to 8 inches of snow had fallen while a retired NWS employee nearby measured 9 inches and was a quarter mile visibility at the time. By 11am another 8 inches had fallen. The quarter mile visibility lasted from 544am to 136pm on the 1st, with winds of 15 to 20 mph. The storm total by 446pm had reached 22 inches, but post frontal snow showers continued through the following morning with around 7 inches of additional accumulation.

Snow began in Skagway around 7pm on February 28th and by 545am the next morning a report came in with about 6 inches in town and a strong south wind. The Klondike Highway report mentioned a minimum of 5 inches near the border with blowing and drifting snow. The highway was closed for a few hours that morning due to avalanche conditions on the Canadian side. The storm total in town was 10 inches as measured at the COOP station on the morning of the 2nd after snow had ended.

Haines DOT estimated 6 to 8 inches of snow and blowing snow by early morning on the 1st and multiple spotters in town measured over 8 inches by 8am. Visibility at the Haines airport fell to a quarter mile at 734am and stayed that low until 357pm. Haines school district had an early dismissal with all afternoon activities cancelled. By late afternoon reports were up to 2 feet of snow in town. Strong wind and snow continued through the morning of the 2nd with gusts of 30 to 40mph and storm totals of 26 to 35 inches in town and 15.8 inches measured at the border.

Dry snow began late evening on February 28th and became heavy overnight. Gustavus DOT measured 5 inches by early morning on the 1st, then reported another 9 inches by 1134am. Winds were gusting 20 to 30 mph throughout the morning and peaked at 39mph in the afternoon. The storm total snowfall reached 18 inches before changing to rain in the afternoon.

Dry snow began late evening on February 28th and became heavy the following morning. Winds were gusting around 20mph through the morning with visibility down to a quarter mile at times. Some mixing with rain began in the afternoon, but periods of snow continued through the next morning. The Hoonah COOP measured 3.6 inches by 730am on the 1st and another 10.5 the next morning for a storm total of 14.1 inches.

Snow began late evening on February 28th and became heavy through the following morning. Winds were gusting around 30mph through the morning. Some mixing with rain and ice pellets began in the afternoon. The Pelican COOP measured 6.7 inches by 8am on the 1st and another 13.4 the next morning for a storm total of 20.1 inches.

Snow began late evening on February 28th and continued through the following morning. A change to rain happened in the afternoon of the 1st. An estimated storm total of 10 inches was given by an Angoon School District employee.

Snow began late on February 28th and continued to fall through the following afternoon. By morning, over 6 inches were measured by multiple people across town. By 1045am over 11 inches was reported via social media on Douglas. Blowing and drifting snow was also reported by multiple spotters. After 921am, blizzard conditions were occurring.

Snow began late on February 28th and became heavy through the following morning with periodic gusts of around 25mph. A change to rain happened in the afternoon. The COOP station at the Petersburg airport measured 6 inches by 1248pm with rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour and significant settling. A storm total of 9 inches was measured at their official measurement time of 9pm that night.

Trained spotter in Security Bay, 17 miles W of Kake, measured 8.5 inches of snow by 1038am on the 1st. A change to rain occurred after this time.

Snow began late on February 28th and became heavy through the following morning with periodic gusts of around 30mph. A change to rain happened in the late morning. A trained spotter south of Wrangell measured 6 inches of dense snow.

Snow began late on February 28th and became heavy through the following morning with periodic gusts of around 30mph and a peak of 52mph at Hydaburg. A change to rain happened in the late morning. A trained spotter in Craig measured 5 inches of snow, blizzard like conditions and a power outage at 545am. A CoCoRaHS observer in Edna Bay measured 12 inches of snow by 7am. Thorne Bay COOP on the east side of the island measured 4 inches from this event.

Snow began late on February 28th and became heavy through the following morning with periodic gusts of around 35 to 50mph. A trained spotter in Ketchikan measured 9 inches of snow at 830am, but drifting made it difficult to measure. The COOP on the north side of town measured 8 inches from this event and noted a change to rain at 10am. At 703am the City of Ketchikan delayed opening for 2 hours.

Snow began late on February 28th and became heavy through the following morning with periodic gusts of around 35 to 45mph. An NWS Employee measured 4.3 inches of snow and a power outage at 7am. The COOP in Metlakatla measured 2.1 inches of snow at 1148am, but noted that there was a large amount of snow overnight that had transitioned into rain with high winds. The COOP also noted the power outage.

Snow began late on February 28th and became heavy through the following morning and continued for approximately 24 hours. The COOP in Hyder measured 2.8 inches of snow by 4am and noted rates of 2 inches per hours shortly after. The nearby town of Stewart B.C. recorded heavy ice pellets at 921am and snow continuing through 11pm.

The ASOS at the Juneau airport had continuous visibility of one quarter mile or less between 9am and 1pm with winds gusting between 36-56mph. Whiteout conditions were reported on Egan Drive, the main highway in town, and the city closed multiple activities including a school early dismissal. Storm total snowfall from this event ranged from 6 to 12 inches before changing to rain in the afternoon.