Blizzard warning holds on North Slope coast until 7 am Sunday, with 60 mph gusts forecast

The National Weather Service in Fairbanks is keeping a blizzard warning on Utqiagvik and the central and eastern Beaufort Sea coast until 7 am Sunday. Forecasters expect gusts to 60 mph Saturday afternoon into Sunday, after a lull through Saturday morning.

The warning covers Deadhorse, Prudhoe Bay, Kuparuk, Alpine, Point Thomson, Nuiqsut, Kaktovik, Flaxman Island and the Dalton Highway north of milepost 387. The weather service's Friday warning says travel should be limited to emergencies only. It urges anyone traveling to carry a winter survival kit and stay with their vehicle if stranded. Visibility could drop below half a mile at times, with up to 2 more inches of snow.

Forecasters' Friday afternoon discussion calls for gusts of 50 to 60 mph from Utqiagvik to Kaktovik, strongest near Deadhorse from Saturday evening through Sunday. The discussion says a strong Arctic high to the north and a trough over the state are creating a sharp difference in air pressure over the coast, which drives the wind. Winds should ease to 30 to 50 mph into early next week, strongest near Kaktovik, with blowing snow likely.

An earlier Beaufort coast blizzard warning was canceled Nov. 10 and replaced by an advisory.

At the Deadhorse airport, 55 of 56 weather reports from Friday afternoon into early Saturday showed visibility at or below half a mile. At Utqiagvik, the strongest gust measured since Wednesday was about 44 mph.

The state emergency management division's daily situation report for Nov. 13 lists the warning and reports no impacts.

Inland, a winter weather advisory covers the central Brooks Range, including Anaktuvuk Pass, Atigun Pass, Galbraith Lake and the Dalton Highway from milepost 232 to 322, from noon Saturday to 3 am Sunday. Forecasters expect up to 2 inches of snow and gusts to 40 mph there. Road conditions are posted at 511.alaska.gov.