Winter storm hits Western Alaska and Fairbanks on its way to Southcentral

Much of Alaska braced for possible heavy snow and blizzard conditions throughout Thursday as a winter storm moved east, and conditions in some regions may get worse before they get better.

Coastal communities were the first to be hit. The storm caused power outages in parts of Nome and Kotzebue, officials said.

National Weather Service meteorologist Steven Vasko said Kotzebue was experiencing "basically whiteout conditions," with wind gusts of 55 to 65 mph. A blizzard warning remains in effect for the Baldwin Peninsula and Selawik Valley — including Kotzebue, Selawik and Noorvik — until 4 a.m. Saturday.

Around noon Thursday, a Kotzebue Electric Association employee said the utility worked through the day to restore power to portions of the Northwest town.

"We just got one section of town back on, and now we're going to work on another part," office manager Martin Shroyer said Thursday morning. Power was restored and everything was running smoothly by about 3 p.m.

Kotzebue city clerk Linda Greene said "every business and organization in town is closed" because of the storm.

"You can't even see across the street," she said.

Nome experienced intermittent power outages from about 11 p.m. Wednesday night through 5 a.m. Thursday as a result of the storm, said the Nome Joint Utility Systems general manager John Handeland.

"We didn't lose the whole town," he said. "I don't think people who were out (of power) were out more than an hour, hour and a half."

He estimated that there could have been about 150 to 200 homes without power.

Meteorological technician Robert Murders in Nome said that while the area is only under a winter storm warning through 6 p.m., Nome is also under a coastal flood warning that lasts until Saturday morning.

"We've got another one coming," he said.

Winter storm conditions were expected to hit Southcentral Alaska overnight as snow started to fall Thursday evening at 9 p.m., the weather service said in a Facebook post.

West Anchorage is expected to see 3 to 5 inches of snow, with 5 to 9 inches elsewhere. Wasilla and Palmer was expected to get between 7 and 11 inches, while Hatcher Pass was expected to get at least a foot, the weather service said.

"Whiteout conditions and snow-covered roads will make travel along the Glenn and Parks highways very hazardous into Friday morning," the weather service said.

Fairbanks weather service lead forecaster Cary Freeman said it started snowing in Fairbanks around 3 p.m.

Dense snowfall started as the night wore on; about 3 inches of snow had blanketed Fairbanks by 8:30 p.m. The heavier stuff was expected to keep falling until Friday morning, Freeman said.

The forecast calls for 8 to 15 inches in the Interior city.

"We expect it to increase rapidly this afternoon and expect it to be heavy into tonight and tomorrow morning," the weather service said. "There's a potential for power outages. Might be more widespread than just a scattered power outage."

Fairbanks Mayor Jim Matherly decided to close City Hall on Friday due to "hazardous weather conditions from the ongoing storm." Emergency and public services will run as usual, according to statement from the mayor's office.