Gulf Coast Snow Events, December 2011-January 2012

Gulf Coast Snow Events, December 2011January 2012 Unless otherwise noted, information from NCDC Storm Events Database

Alaska’s Gulf Coast saw incredible amounts of snow between December 2011 and January 2012. Low-pressure system after low-pressure system battered the Gulf, bringing high winds, rain, blizzard conditions, and snow. The storms usually either came west from the Bering Sea or north from the Pacific, as strong westerlies that developed mid-December over the Aleutians sent cyclones towards the Gulf.1 Many safety hazards resulted—dangerous driving conditions with, at times, only several feet of visibility which caused many car wrecks and moose collision deaths, power outages as tree limbs fell on power lines, avalanche threats as rain and warmer temperatures heated the snow, and collapsing roofs as some towns were covered in as much as 18ft of snow, such as Cordova. Cordova, a small fishing town with a population of 2,200, got the brunt of these monstrous storms. For example, on January 6th, the town received 20in of snow, breaking a 21-year-old daily record by 135%. The city’s mayor declared a state of emergency for the town after several weeks of relentless snow buried the town. To aid in the emergency, the Alaska National Guard provided snow- removal assistance and brought supplies to the citizens. The State of Alaska spent $775K on relief efforts, including sending the Guard to Cordova and snow- removal machines to Cordova and other towns. Many other Gulf cities felt the wrath of the “snowpocalypse” and snow- removal issues, including Valdez, Yakutat, Haines, and Anchorage. As Anchorage was digging out from their snowiest season (snow season running from July to June of the next year) since 195455, and as the residents became antsy for faster snow handling, the city’s budget director estimated it would cost the city $33M$45M more a year for a complete 24-hour snow removal after the end of a storm.2

Date(s) Details Dec. 7Dec. 9 A low-pressure system over the Bering Sea caused rain and snow for Yakutat and Juneau. An upper-level jet pulled in moisture from the Gulf, fueling the precipitation in the Panhandle. The system moved southwest and brought snow to Anchorage. . Strong wind in South Central Alaska produced gusts up to 86mph along the Anchorage Hillside. . According to Anchorage Police, hardened snow banks could have contributed to the crash of an SUV on the night of 1/8, killing one female passenger.3 . Thompson Pass measured 18.9in of snow from 12/7 through 12/9. Dec. 11Dec. 12 An intense Bering Sea low-pressure system, and associated front, moved

1 2012: Weatherwatch. Weatherwise, 68.

2 Quicker Snow Removal Would Cost City $33M to $45M Per Year. NBC - 2 KTUU (Anchorage, AK) - January 13, 2012. Author: Matthew Simon. Section: News.

3 Woman Dies in One Car Rollover in Midtown Anchorage.NBC - 2 KTUU (Anchorage, AK) - December 9, 2011. Author: Rhonda McBride. Section: News eastward through the Western Gulf, creating instability with warm, moist air pushed over colder air in the Northern Lynn Canal area. This system produced heavy snow and blizzard conditions in Anchorage, Thompson Pass, and Susitna Valley. Warmer-than-normal temperatures were advected to the Anchorage area. . High winds in Cordova knocked over some trees. . High winds in Anchorage resulted in numerous extended power outages. . The Anchorage School District was closed on 1/11 because of the dangerous traveling conditions. . The Haines Highway got a rapid snowfall of 7in by the morning of 12/12. . 8,000 people in Hope, Moose Pass, Whittier, Indian, and the Anchorage Hillside all lost power during mid-afternoon on 1/11 because of falling tree limbs and high winds. By nighttime, about half had power again. Nine crews worked long hours to restore power. . Between midnight and early evening on 1/12, dispatchers recorded 29 crashes and 40 reports of vehicles in distress. Many vehicles skidded off Seward Highway.4 . The Alaska DOT had 6 plow/sander trucks, 5 graders, 2 belly-dump sanders, and 2 sidewalk blowers working in Anchorage for snow removal. The DOT salted the roads to attempt to smooth out bumps. They also performed avalanche control on the Seward Highway.5 . About 2,500 homes and businesses in Kenai also lost power on 1/11, but power was mostly restored within an hour.6 . Valdez received 20.3in of snow on 12/11. Dec. 13Dec. 14 A front from an associated weak low-pressure system from the Bering Sea moved eastward onto the Gulf Coast on the morning of 12/14, brining with it heavy snow to Yakutat. . On 12/13, Yakutat measured 3.6in of snow. On 12/14, 7.3in of new snow were measured from the previous night, giving a storm total of 10.9in of new snow. . Visibility at Yakutat Airport dropped to as low as 0.50mi on 12/14. Dec. 17Dec. 18 A complex, low-pressure system in the Bering Sea moved westward during the early morning hours of 1/17, bringing with it high winds to South Central Alaska, namely the Prince William Sound. It also produced blizzard conditions for Portage Valley and Thompson Pass. . In Bear Valley (Anchorage), high wind caused two roofs to be partially blown off and it caused major utility outages across the Anchorage area. Chugach Electric incurred nearly $500K in costs to restore and repair utilities damaged from the high wind. . Winds of 14mph and drifting snow created an issue for television

4 Winter storm leaves roads slick in Fairbanks, causes power outages, accidents. Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK) - December 11, 2011. Author: Staff and Wire Report Fairbanks Daily News Miner

5 No Snow Day on Roads, Sledding Hills. NBC - 2 KTUU (Anchorage, AK). December 12, 2011. Author: Ted Land. Section: News

6 Heavy, blowing snow and high winds knock out power - BLIZZARD: Police busy responding to accidents, vehicles in distress. Anchorage Daily News (AK) - December 12, 2011. Author: LISA DEMER [email protected] ; Staff. Edition: Final. Section: Main. Page: A3 reception in Kenai from signals in Glen Alps on 12/18.7 . Valdez received 20.0in of snow on 12/17. Dec. 20 A strong low-pressure system moved into Southwest Alaska bringing snow and strong wind to the Central Gulf, including the Anchorage area, Susitna Valley, and the Thompson Pass area. . Blizzard conditions were produced in Thompson Pass because of high winds paired with 30in of snow. This also created an avalanche threat. . The peak wind in Anchorage was 84mph. . Talkeetna DOT reported 16in of snow on 1/20. Dec. 22Dec. 23 A strong low of 970mb made its way to the Central Gulf Coast on 1/22, causing heavy snow and high winds for the Panhandle as warm, moist air was pushed over cooler surface air around the Northern Lynn Canal area. . Skagway Customs measured 7.0in of snowfall from the night of 12/21; Haines Customs measured 6.5in. . Hydaburg AWOS had gusts as high as 76mph around midday on 12/22. Most winds were 60 to 70mph. . Upslope flow produced heavy snowfall at the Robertson River Bridge with a total of 10.2in of snow from the afternoon of 12/22 until midday on 12/23. A total of 5.7in of snow were observed in 7hrs during the afternoon and early evening of the 22nd. . Peak wind at Thompson Pass was 146mph with blizzard conditions. . Despite getting 6.0in of snow during the storm, Alaska Airlines at Anchorage International Airport reported only minor delays. . During the night of 12/22 in Anchorage, there were 3 car accidents and 29 cars were stuck in ditches.6 . To add to the excitement, there was a 3.9 magnitude earthquake 12mi southwest of Anchorage. There were no reports of damage.8 Dec. 26Dec. 29 A strong low-pressure system spanned the entire Gulf on 12/26, bringing heavy snow to the Haines area on 12/26 and 12/27, while tight pressure gradients caused strong winds for the outer coast and the Southern Panhandle. By the afternoon of 12/26, the system deepened to have a central pressure of 960mb near Middleton Island with hurricane-force (category 3) gusts. Another low- pressure system met up with the nearly-stalled the trough on 12/27, brining warmer air, snow, and rain to the Panhandle through 12/29. . Hydaburg AWOS recorded a gust of 76mph on 12/26 with many sustained winds in the 60s and lower 70s. . Baranof Island measured a peak wind of 84mph at 9am on 12/26, with many sustained wind speeds in the 70s. . Haines Customs measured 18in new snowfall for 24hrs, ending at 7am on 12/27. Downtown Haines got 12.5in. . Blizzard conditions persisted in Thompson Pass. Jan. 1Jan. 2 A low-pressure system from the North Pacific, spanning the entire Gulf on 1/1, caused highly variable amounts of snow, strong winds up to 60mph, and rain

7 Kenai Television Signal Down. NBC - 2 KTUU (Anchorage, AK) - December 18, 2011. Author: Tim Akimoff. Section: News.

8 Anchorage gets up to 14 inches of snow. Associated Press State Wire: Alaska. (AK) - December 23, 2011. Author: MARK THIESSEN - Associated Press. Section: State and regional through 1/2. . Snow amounts were highly variable around Juneau; Lena point measured 8.9in and Auke Bay measured 7.6in of new snow for the evening of 1/1, while the airport only got 4.1in. . Yakutat received 5.9in of new snow during the afternoon of 1/1; Gustavus measured 8.5in of new snow in the morning. . A spotter in Hoonah measured 6.5in of new snow on 1/1 and an additional 4.9in during the early morning of 1/2. . Downtown Haines COOP observer measured 16.1in of new snow on the morning of 1/2. . Haines Customs measured 4.0in of new snow on 1/1 and 42.0in of new snow on 1/2; most of the snow fell before midnight. . A COOP observer near Ketchikan observed 70mph gusts on 1/1; Hydaburg AWOS measured 60mph gusts during the afternoon. . Peak winds at Thompson Pass were 108mph. Jan. 3Jan. 5 A storm-force system with many low centers, coming from the North Pacific, covered the entire Gulf on 1/3. The storm headed north along the Panhandle on 1/4, creating tightly-packed pressure gradients and, thus, high winds to the Clarence Strait area. The system weakened by mid-afternoon 1/4, but heavy snow persisted in the Haines area into 1/5. . Downtown Haines received a total of 15.6in of new snow between 1/3 and 1/4; Haines Customs measured 13.0in of snow. . Valdez measured 19.2in of snow on 1/5. . Spotters near Clarence Strait reported 115mph gusts. . The Southern Channels experienced a several-hour power outage and many downed trees across the roads. . Up to one foot of snow fell in just a few hours during the early morning hours of 1/4 along the Richardson Highway. . Yakutat received 20.3in of snow the night of 1/5. . There were 90mph gusts in Whittier on 1/4, which ripped off several boat covers that were in a dry dock and broke one boat window in Begich Towers. The mooring lines of several boats moored in the harbor were snapped due to the strong winds. Jan. 6Jan. 8 A hurricane-force 960mb low center moved into the Northern Gulf on 1/6 and produced heavy snow and strong winds through 1/8 across the South Central region, the Prince William Sound area, and east through the Northern Lynn Canal area. . Downtown Haines measured 5.5in of new snowfall on the morning of 1/7 and then 1.8in on the morning of 1/8. . Eldred Rock had a peak gust of 80mph on 1/8. . The mountains in Anchorage got 12in of snow. . Valdez measured 19.3in of snow on 1/6. . A state of emergency was declared in Cordova on 1/6. White-out conditions on 1/6 in Cordova only added to the danger of the city being buried beneath 18ft of snow from the past few weeks. Snowplows could not maneuver in the streets because visibility fell between 10 to 15ft. More than 70 Alaska National Guard personnel were sent to Cordova on 1/8 to help move snow, including avalanche control, and provide assistance and supplies to the people. The Guard arrived by ferries to the city because there was no road access. Other volunteers and workers were paid $25/hour to shovel snow.9 Snow depth at the airport was 59in on 1/9 before rain compressed it to 47ft. Two commercial buildings and one house had their roofs collapsed by snow.10 . After this storm, Valdez had 290.1in of snowfall during the season, which was 146in above normal.11 Jan. 10Jan.12 An intense, low-pressure system in the northern Gulf, with a central pressure of 968mb, produced strong winds, low wind chills, heavy snow, rain, and blizzard conditions for the South Central. On 1/10, a strong, upper-level jet brought moist air to the Prince William Sound area, and caused more heavy snow, and then rain, for Cordova and the Anchorage-Sustina Valley area. The storm extended to Yakutat and Haines, also brining them snow. The system weakened and stalled but still continued to produce snow until 1/12. . Blizzard conditions and an avalanche closed the Seward Highway between Bird and Girdwood the night of 1/10 through the late afternoon of 1/12.12 . Valdez received 31.6in of snow from this storm. . Yakutat received 5.9in of new snow from noon to midnight on 1/10. The snow changed to heavy rain around midnight, which rapidly compacted the snow by measurement time. . The roof of First National Bank in Cordova collapsed on 1/9 because of the snow load that had been building the past few weeks. . City officials in Cordova were in a search for more shovels—the shovels kept breaking trying to move heavy snow. They worked with shovel manufactures in Quebec to have more shovels sent to them. They ordered 72 shovels at $50/shovel, which was paid for by the city’s emergency fund.13 . A warm-up with rain turned Cordova’s rain to slush, which created widespread fear of avalanches.14 . Three docked boats sank in Kodiak because of the heavy snow load. Kodiak got about 10in of snow on 1/9, and another 6in on 1/10. . As of 1/11, the snow depth in Kodiak was 21in. . Because of the snowy conditions in Anchorage on 1/12, there were 88 reports of vehicles in distress, 51 wrecks without injuries, and 5 wrecks

9 BIG SNOW OF 2012. Cordova Times (AK) - January 13, 2012. Section: News

10 Alaska town tries to dig out from huge snow dump. Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. (AK) - January 8, 2012. Author: Rachel D'Oro. Section: Alaska News

11 State of Emergency Continues in Cordova, Alaska National Guardsmen Arrive to Help. NBC - 2 KTUU (Anchorage, AK) - January 8, 2012. Section: News.

12 Seward Highway Closure Extended Until Wednesday. NBC - 2 KTUU. (Anchorage, AK) - January 10, 2012. Author: Neil Torquiano and Ted Land. Section: News.

13 Shovel maker helps Cordova dig out from big snowfall. Kodiak. Daily Mirror (AK) - January 12, 2012. Author: Mark Thiessen / Associated Press. Section: news.

14 National Weather Service: Big snowfall but no record. Kodiak Daily Mirror (AK) - January 11, 2012. Author: Daily Mirror Staff / [email protected]. Section: news. with injuries.15 . As of 1/12, Anchorage had 88in of snowfall, which was more than double of its normal snowfall of 30.1in, from the “snow season” between July 1 to June 30.16 . As of 1/12, the State of Alaska has paid $775K for relief efforts including the Guard to help Cordova, heavy equipment for snow removal, and fuel.17 Jan. 13Jan. 14 During the night of 1/13, a strong Arctic high pressure built over Alaska’s interior, causing the semi-permanent Arctic front to move southward, from Lynn Canal all the way to Dixon Entrance by the morning of 1/14. This movement lifted warm, moist air over the southern Panhandle, producing heavy snow, namely around Ketchikan, in a possible “lake-effect” manner. . A spotter near Ketchikan measured 13in of rapidly accumulating new snowfall on 1/13, with another 6in overnight in snow showers. Other areas around Ketchikan had highly variable amounts; some of which were only a couple of inches. . Blizzard conditions persisted through Thompson Pass. Jan. 19Jan. 27 A storm-force low, deepening down in to the 950mbs (category 3 hurricane pressures), moved into the Central Gulf on 1/19 and lingered there until 1/27. The system caused high winds, cold temperatures, and heavy snow for most of the Panhandle. On 1/22, a low from the North Pacific merged with the existing low-pressure system, brining more snow to the Panhandle because it rotated in warm, moist air over the cold surface air. The system weakened the night of 1/22 but strengthened again when another low from the North Pacific joined the massive system, until finally dissipating on 1/27. . South Douglas profiler observed many gusts between 70 to 80mph on the night of 1/19. . Baranof Island received 19.0in of new snow on the evening of 1/20 and had 60mph winds. . Misty Fjords measured 17.4in of new snowfall from 1/20 through the morning of 1/22. . Edna Bay observed 10.3in of new snowfall during this storm. . Coffman Cove got 9.7in by the morning of 1/21 and an additional 3.6in by the morning of 1/22. . Gusts at Eldred Rock were 93mph. . Haines and the Lynn Canal area had a period of strong north wind on 1/20 with gusts of 70mph. . Downtown Haines measured 15.7in of new snow on 1/22. Visibility at Haines airport was as low as 0.25mi. . As of 1/18, Kodiak had received 36.4in of snow. . Yakutat WSO measured 7.7in of new snow on 1/23, with visibility as low

15 Anchorage copes with another big snowfall - 88.8 INCHES: City on pace to break all-time mark set 57 years ago; some relief is expected this weekend. Anchorage Daily News (AK). January 13, 2012. Author: Daily News staff and wire reports ; Staff. Edition: Final. Section: Main. Page: A10

16 Another big storm hits Alaska as weary residents dig out. Fairbanks Daily. News-Miner (AK) - January 12, 2012. Author: Mark Thiessen. Section: Alaska News

17 Winter piles on more snow for weather weary. Peninsula Clarion, The (Kenai, AK) - January 12, 2012. Author: Mark Thiessen. Section: News. as 0.25mi and gusts up to 23mph. . Highly variable snow amounts around Juneau; 4 to 6in on the afternoon of 1/23, then 4 to 11in new snow by the morning of 4/24. . Hoonah got 6 to 7in of new snow on 1/24 and the next day received 11.6in more of snow. . The NWS office in Yakutat measured 11.3in of new snow on 1/24; 11.2 on 1/25, 8.7 on 1/26, and 9.3 on 1/27. Snow removal had been a significant issue and cost to Yakutat for the winter of 201112. . Cape Decision had gusts up to 93mph. Jan. 29Jan. 31 During the evening of 1/29, the Arctic front was situated over Juneau, while a weak low-pressure system rotated in warm, moist air to the area. Heavy snow was brought to the Haines area the night of 1/30. . Juneau Airport received 7.5in of snow overnight on 1/29. The water treatment plant in Juneau measured 14.0in on 1/30. . The Haines area had snow totals ranging from 8 to 11in. . A spotter measured 11in of new snow at the Chilkat Peninsula. . On 1/30, on Thane Road in Juneau, there was a power outage caused by the storm lasting for three hours, which affected 89 people.18

10-Day Snowfall Records (from NOAA RCC’s xmACIS2) Station Value Dates Cannery Creek 65.2 2011-12-22 through 2011-12-31 Cordova North 89.5 2011-12-28 through 2012-01-06 Anchorage 11.9 SSE 43.8 2011-12-19 through 2011-12-28

Select Snowfall Records (from NOAA RCC’s xmACIS2)

Station December December January 2012 January Avg. 2011 Avg. Anchorage 31.1 14.7 25.2 11.2 Cordova 71.3 25.1 53.6 23.2 Valdez 152.2 60.0 X X Haines Customs* 74.5 62.2 123.5 50.9 *Limited period of record

18 Oh Snow!. Juneau Empire (AK) - January 31, 2012. Section: Local