Winter Storm — Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska

2023-03-01 · Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska

Event narrative

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.

Wider weather episode

A strong low pressure developed over the northern Gulf of Alaska bringing significant moisture to Southeast Alaska. Cold air entrenched over the region at low levels ahead of the event allowed for significant snow to fall across the area in two major pulses. The first being along the warm front, with a period of blizzard conditions over Juneau, and the second pulse occurred as the cold front moved across the region.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1082523. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.