Weather

Snow ahead for Anchorage and Fairbanks as deep-freeze forecast is downgraded

Update, 9:30 p.m. Friday:

Snow was forecast to continue falling in the Anchorage and Fairbanks areas on Friday night into Saturday, with accumulations ranging from 4 to 8 inches in both cities, according to the National Weather Service.

Advisories were issued for Anchorage, the Susitna Valley and along the Parks Highway and Fairbanks, among other areas, on Friday evening, with the weather service warning that moderate to heavy snowfall could affect travel and visibility.

In Anchorage, the heaviest snow was forecast on the east side of the city.

 

Earlier story:

Interior Alaska's forecast for the weekend has changed from 40 below zero to 4 inches of snow, and Southcentral is expected to avoid its own burst of cold weather.

The National Weather Service on Thursday afternoon revised a forecast that had predicted a frigid Interior cold snap starting over the weekend, saying instead that temperatures would hover at relatively warmer temperatures of 10 to 30 below zero.

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"The previously advertised significant cold spell with temperatures 40 to 50 below over the Interior late this weekend into early next week is no longer expected to occur," Thursday's special weather statement said.

Snowfall is forecast to begin in the southeastern Interior and eastern Alaska Range on Friday morning, continuing through Saturday evening. A winter weather advisory is in effect beginning at 3 p.m. Friday for Fairbanks and surrounding areas, with 4 to 8 inches of snow anticipated.

More snow is expected starting Sunday through Tuesday, the statement says, although accumulation estimates aren't yet known.

Meanwhile, in Southcentral, a strong system of warmer air traveling up from the north Pacific Ocean is holding off cold Arctic air heading south. The Arctic system will be diverted to southwest Alaska, said Jason Ahsenmacher, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Anchorage.

"That's going to keep warmer air in place across Southcentral through the weekend, actually," Ahsenmacher said.

"It's not going to be warm, it's going to be warmer than we were thinking," he added, noting that areas like Bethel and the lower Kuskokwim Delta will still likely see some cold air.

Two bursts of snowfall are now forecast in the near future for Southcentral. The first is expected to arrive Friday, bringing 3 to 5 inches in Anchorage, and more accumulation at higher elevations.

Hatcher Pass is forecast to see 9 to 12 inches, according to a graphic posted on NWS Alaska's Facebook page.

On Sunday afternoon and into Monday, a second batch of snowfall is forecast for Southcentral. While it's too far off for details, there's potential for "pretty decent accumulation," Ahsenmacher said.

A cold snap is still possible in the region later by Thursday or Friday of next week, Ahsenmacher said.

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