Snow

Anchorage has seen record-breaking snowfall in recent weeks but city emergency management and building safety officials say there is no immediate concern about roofs collapsing, as seen in Cordova where officials have declared a state of emergency. However, an increased amount of concerned phone calls to those departments prompted those officials to issue a news release Thursday answering residents' roof questions. According to Anchorage Emergency Management spokesperson Dawn Brantley, local building code requires roofs to bear a safe and allowable snow load of at least 40 pounds per square foot in the Anchorage Bowl.

A 960 mb low is located near Unalaska this morning.  Another low center is extending out from it over Bristol Bay.  Over the Gulf of Alaska, a strong upper level jet is steering moisture into the northern shores of the Gulf, including PWS and the northern Panhandle.  Some of this precipitation is heavy.  Wrap-around moisture is covering Southwest, with pockets of moderate rain and snow. This storm has prompted Winter Weather advisories in SW and Blizzard Warnings along Turnagain Arm and Portage Valley through the morning.  A huge surge in temperatures is not anticipated with this storm, however, widespread 30s and 40s are expected.  Coastal areas that are seeing snow now, like Seward and Homer, may mix with or change to rain later as slightly milder air arrives.

The National Weather Service has canceled a blizzard advisory for parts of Southcentral Alaska Friday night, saying a winter weather advisory remains in effect for several parts of the region. Anchorage, Eagle River, Indian and Eklutna are no longer expected to face blizzard conditions, according to an NWS update just after 4 p.m. Talkeetna, Willow and Cantwell are still expected to face two to four inches of snow before the advisory ends at 10 p.m. Friday, with a total accumulation of five to 10 inches -- falling most heavily north of Talkeetna -- over its course.

With spring just a few weeks away, animals in hibernation are starting to wake up. Brown bears at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center are awake after their five-month long nap, according to Executive Director Mike Miller. Miller says that hibernation is how bears survive through the winter. He says that a thick layer of fat, the loss of a constant food source, and the first good snow of the winter puts bears into hibernation. According to Miller, the hibernating bears are roused by warmer temperatures and melting snow.

by The Associated Press Saturday, April 3, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- National Park Service officials say mild weather and low levels of ice and snow mean a longer stretch of Denali Park Road can open to visitors earlier than usual. The road between Savage River at mile 15 and the Teklanika River rest area at mile 30 is opening at 8 a.m. Saturday, weather permitting. The stretch to mile 15 opened last week. Park spokesperson Kris Fister says the longer stretch is usually open in mid-April.

Update , (9:32 p.m.) : A section of the Richardson Highway remained closed Friday night due to fierce winter conditions, according to the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. DOT spokesperson Meadow Bailey said mile 185 near Paxson Lodge to mile 202 near McCullam Creek stayed closed as of 9:30 p.m. due to "drifting snow, winds, ice, heavy snow, avalanche clean up, and no visibility. " State crews have set up barricades at mile 185 and mile 261 at the Fort Greely gates.

A major spring storm over the Bering Sea is pounding the west coast at this time.  Heavy snow and winds from 15 to 40 mph are combining to create blizzard conditions along the western capes of Bristol Bay, the Kuskokwim delta, and St. Lawrence Island.  Winter Weather advisories and Winter Storm warnings are spread over much of the rest of the west. Blizzards will abate later this morning.  Scattered snow showers are likely through the afternoon.  A strong southerly flow has brought a return to spring-like temps.  Highs will range from the 30s in the Alaska Peninsula to teens and 20s around the Y-K Delta.

Today will be the last day in what has ended up being a beautiful, long stretch of unseasonably warm and dry weather.  Much of the state has seen sunshine this week and temps in the 40s, 50s and even 60s.  We'll chase those warmer readings away and see clouds thicken up later tonight. Expect highs in the upper 40s in SE with rain showers likely.  Southcentral will be warm, but not as warm as the last couple days.  PWS will stay in the upper 40s and the Inlet region will top out in the 50s.  Mild and sunny conditions are in store for Southwest with 40s and low 50s.  Most of the Interior will remain mostly sunny and dry with highs in the 40s and 50.  Clouds and isolated showers will remain along the southern Alcan.

Here's the latest on the Western Alaska storm system: Coastal Flood Warnings remain in effect for nearly all of the West Coast, from the Yukon Delta to Cape Lisburne.  The warnings are in effect into the afternoon and evening hours.  The most susceptible times for flooding and erosion will be at high tide.  Sea levels may still raise at high tides from 3 to 8 feet, posing localized risks for continued battering of immediate coastlines.  Warnings...

I'll keep this short.  Scattered rain showers continue in the southern Panhandle with rain and snow showers across the northern Panhandle.  A couple inches are possible around Yakutat. No change for the West and Slope--still cold and dry.  Look for patchy ice fog along the Slope.  Highs will range from the single digits West to 35 below in Deadhorse. Scattered light snow is possible in Homer, Kodiak and over Southwest AK.  Accumulations will generally remain below two inches.  The Aleutians and AK Peninsula will have scattered snow showers pass through from time to time with little accumulation through tonight.