Winds hit 92 mph at Cordova Harbor, topping the forecast

Winds peaked at 92 mph overnight at Cordova Harbor, the National Weather Service's Anchorage office said Tuesday, stronger than the gusts of up to 80 mph forecasters had warned the town to expect.

The high wind warning, issued at 2:21 am Tuesday, told residents to secure loose objects and prepare for widespread power outages. The weather service canceled it a little before 6 am, saying the threat of very strong winds had ended, though gusts up to 50 mph would continue through late morning.

The storm, a low in the Gulf of Alaska, reached across Southcentral Alaska. Gusts hit close to 70 mph across parts of Prince William Sound, 60 mph at Thompson Pass, 50 mph in the lower Matanuska Valley and Nikiski, and more than 40 mph around Seward and Kenai, the weather service said in its forecast discussion.

Gusts of 55 to 70 mph were expected in Whittier, Portage Valley and East Turnagain Arm through noon Tuesday, and up to 70 mph at Windy Pass in the northern Denali Borough until 6 pm.