Heavy Snow — Wrn Tanana Vly Wrn Yukon Vly, Alaska

2009-11-11 to 2009-11-13 · Wrn Tanana Vly Wrn Yukon Vly, Alaska

Wider weather episode

A 955 mb near Nome at 9 am on the 11th tracked across the Seward Peninsula and slowly weakened to 982 mb near Selawik by 3 pm on the 12th. The low brought a moist westerly flow into the interior, and produced heavy snowfall in the Upper Koyukuk Valley, parts of the Central Interior, and across the higher elevations in the Middle Tanana Valley around Fairbanks. Here are some snowfall reports that were received from this event:

Zone 219: Heavy snow fell in Bettles with a storm total of 25.3 inches (three day total from the 11th through the 13th). The heaviest snow fell on the 12th, with a 24 hour total of 14.2 inches.

Zone 220: Blizzard conditions likely occurred along parts of the Steese Highway in the vicinity of Eagle Summit from the late afternoon hours on the 12th through the late morning hours on the 13th. According to a statement from the State of Alaska DOT, travel was not advised on the Steese Highway MP 101 to MP 121. Strong winds, heavy snow and drifting snow were reported with low to zero visibility.

Zone 221: Heavy snow fell in parts of the Central Interior. The Manley DOT observed a total of 11 inches of snow in Manley, and estimated that one to two feet of snow fell over the higher elevations along the Elliot Highway.

Zone 222: Heavy snow fell on the hills around Fairbanks with storm totals of 9 to 15 inches. In the valleys storm totals were generally in the 2 to 6 inch range. Here are a few of the higher snowfall totals that were observed from this event:

Keystone Ridge: 15.5 inches

Mile 42 Steese Highway: 12.0 inches

Fort knox Mine: 9.0 inches.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 197037. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.