High Wind — Kuskokwim Delta Coast and Nunivak Island, Alaska

2025-10-12 · Kuskokwim Delta Coast and Nunivak Island, Alaska

Event narrative

High winds were reported in various communities around the Kuskokwim Delta Coast with the strongest winds occurring along the coast from 2 AM to 5 AM AKDT October 12. The Toksook Bay ASOS (PAOO) had sustained winds of over 60 mph from around 2 AM AKDT to 5 AM AKDT with gusts over 80 mph during that time. The site reported a 100 mph peak wind gust at 3:35 AM October 12. Weather observation sites in some villages such as Mekoryuk and Kipnuk stopped reporting data during the event after receiving wind gusts greater than 70 mph, so peak winds in those locations are unknown. There were injuries from flying debris according to a press release from the Alaska Association of Village Council Presidents, with no information on location. Winds blew roofing off of buildings in Chefornak and also caused power outages. There were reports of roofs blown off in Nightmute. In Mekoryuk, there were reports of roofing material blown off of structures, a power pole down with live wire, and much debris.

Wider weather episode

The remnants of Typhoon Halong in the northern Pacific Ocean began approaching the Bering Sea on Saturday, October 11, 2025, as they merged with a deep upper-level low east of Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula. As the systems merged and underwent extratropical transition, the resulting storm was forced northward by a blocking high-pressure ridge over the Gulf of Alaska. Subsequently, the storm's strength increased rapidly as the surface low was steered north toward the western Alaska coastline. Halong's remnants tracked quickly northeast from the Central Aleutians on October 11, across the Seward Peninsula as a hurricane-strength low on October 12, then weakened over the Beaufort Sea early on October 13.

Impacts were first observed across the Pribilof Islands on the evening of October 11, where wind gusts reached 91 MPH as the storm center passed to the west. As the system intensified and moved northeast, it produced widespread damaging winds across the Yukon'Kuskokwim Delta and north through the Brooks Range, with gusts exceeding 100 MPH in some communities. Simultaneously, intense onshore flow drove a record-breaking storm surge into the Yukon'Kuskokwim Delta coast, resulting in catastrophic flooding and destruction across communities from Kongiganak to Hooper Bay.

After reaching a minimum central pressure of 960 millibars (MB) early on October 12, the storm gradually weakened as it tracked northeast, producing additional wind and surge damage across eastern Norton Sound and Kotzebue Sound before dissipating over the Beaufort Sea on Monday, October 13.

What made Ex-Typhoon Halong particularly unusual was fourfold:

1. A long and unobstructed southwesterly storm track;

2. The timing of its rapid intensification as it approached the coastline;

3. The onshore orientation and extreme intensity of its wind field across the Yukon'Kuskokwim Delta and areas north; and

4. The storm's coincidence with the astronomical high tide, which greatly amplified coastal flooding.

In addition, there was no sea ice present in the Bering or Chukchi Seas, leaving the coastline highly vulnerable to wind-driven waves and surge. Collectively, these factors made Ex-Typhoon Halong one of the most significant coastal storms to impact western Alaska in recorded history. In terms of wind energy and coastal inundation, the storm's intensity and effects were comparable to those of a strong Category 2 hurricane.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1295065. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.