High Surf — Northern Arctic Coast, Alaska

2011-11-01 to 2011-11-02 · Northern Arctic Coast, Alaska

Wider weather episode

Event continued from October. A nearly stationary 980 mb low about 600 miles north of Barrow produced a long fetch of west winds along the northern Arctic Coast. A weaker 997 mb low developed in the southern Chukchi Sea late on the evening of the 1st, and the worst conditions were associated with the passage of this second low during the early morning hours of the 2nd. The combination of winds of 15 to 30 mph along with a considerable amount of open water offshore allowed seas of 5 to 6 feet to break along the shore. The wave action was suppressed to some degree by cake ice that was just offshore. The road near the Naval Arctic Research Laboratory had some water spill over the berm, but the road remained passage. There was also some water reported in a few of the low spots in town, but the flooding was minor and did not threaten any structures.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 347004. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.