Highlights

The effects of the record setting snowfall from the end of September in the Interior carried over to October with several thousand people in the Fairbanks area still without power on the 1st. Power was not fully reported until the 5th with help from linemen up from Anchorage to assist. School busses also used alternate routes on the 1st due to warming temperatures and possible freezing rain. A storm front from the Bering Sea hit the western portion of Alaska on the 1st, with record setting precipitation in Nome, wind gusts up to 67 mph at Wales and 101 mph at St. George Island. The strong winds led to a warning of possible flooding at the airport at Deering. The storm eroded the shoreline 10 feet closer the airport at Kivalina.

High winds and drifting snow closed the Steese highway on the 2nd, while the Dalton Highway was deemed impassible between miles 290 and 298 also due to high winds and drifting snow. Dense fog advisories where issued for the middle Tanana Valley area on the 4th, while the same was forecasted for Anchorage the next day.

Tropical storm Oho took an unusual turn on the 8th to head north to Southeast Alaska with landfall on the 9th. The Jetstream was expected to strengthen the storm before making landfall. This is the first topical storm to make the trip to Alaska since 1975. Storm and gale level warnings of high winds and moderate to heavy rainfall were issued for the area. Limited damage and record rainfall was reported in Ketchikan.

Wind advisories were issued for areas in the northern Interior on the 9th, while storm and gale warnings were issued for the western and northern coasts. In addition, more storm and gale warnings were issued for the Southeast. Gusts up to 81 mph were measured at Edna Bay and 60 mph at Hydaburg. A beach home in Angoon collapsed form the wind and rain.

Dense fog warnings were forecasted for the Matanuska Valley on the 12th. Freezing rain advisories were issued for Fairbanks on the 17th, with winter weather forecasted for east of Fairbanks. Dense fog warnings followed the next day for the Interior and the icy road conditions persisted in the Fairbanks area. More fog and freezing rain hit the region again the next day.

Freezing rain was forecasted in the Interior and Southwest areas on the 24th. Dense fog advisories were issued for the southern panhandle on the 25th. The record setting rains in Kodiak on the 27th resulted in flooding near Bells Flats. The 29th had heavy snow and winter warnings forecasted for the western portion of Alaska. Wet, slushy snow impacted the Susitna Valley and western Kenai Peninsula on the 30th. The 30th also saw Anchorage get its first snow in a month, leaving slippery roads in its wake. Snow also returned to the Fairbanks area on the 29th.