Winter Weather — Matanuska Valley, Alaska

2024-12-04 to 2024-12-06 · Matanuska Valley, Alaska

Event narrative

The Palmer ASOS Station (PAAQ) reported freezing rain between 6:00 AM to 11:30 AM AKST on December 5th. An NWS employee of the Alaska Region Headquarters reported that Big Lake was receiving a bout of freezing rain at 7:30 AM AKST December 5th. A fatal traffic accident was reported off the Parks Highway with State Troopers noting that weather was a major factor in the incident. The two vehicles involved in the incident were a Chevrolet Silverado pickup with two persons and a Toyota Sequia with one person. The male driver of the Chevrolet survived with serious injuries while the female passenger was declared deceased at the scene. Investigations revealed that the Chevrolet lost control on icy roads and collided with the Toyota Sequia in the early morning of December 5th. Freezing rain was falling and roads were still accruing ice at the start of the investigation. An article about the incident can be found here: https://www.countryjournal2020.com/2024/12/crash-kills-woman-on-knik-goose-bay.html.

Wider weather episode

In early December, a north Pacific low tracked into Southcentral Alaska, shifting winds southerly and increasing temperatures and precipitation chances. Temperatures aloft rose above freezing while surface temperatures remained below freezing in the Anchorage and Mat-Su Valley regions. This had the effect of transitioning precipitation that fell into freezing rain. Roads across the aforementioned regions became slick, particularly in neighborhoods and back roads that had prior snow/ice cover. A fatal accident off the Parks Highway occurred with State Troopers noting that weather was a major factor.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1229834. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.