Anchorage sees more snow as blizzard conditions expected for Seward and Whittier

Anchorage could see several more inches of snow on Wednesday and into Thursday morning, according to a winter weather advisory issued by the National Weather Service.

Between 3 and 6 inches of snow is expected by early Thursday, with the highest totals accumulating on the Hillside, the advisory said. Light intermittent snow was forecast to intensify during the afternoon on Wednesday and was expected to taper off toward evening.

Wind gusts up to 25 mph could produce blowing snow and reduce visibility on roads.

On Tuesday, 3.7 inches of snow was recorded near the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport while 1.5 inches was reported in East Anchorage and at a higher elevation on Potter Valley Road.

The worst conditions are expected in Portage Valley, eastern Turnagain Arm and Whittier, according to a blizzard warning issued by the weather service. Wind gusts up to 40 mph were recorded Wednesday morning through Portage Valley and eastern Turnagain Arm, said meteorologist Kaitlyn O’Brien, and visibility was between a quarter-mile and zero. Snow and gusty winds had combined on Tuesday into Wednesday, causing whiteout conditions along portions of the Seward Highway.

Winds were expected to shift west Wednesday afternoon through Portage Valley and continue into Thursday.

Storm totals are expected to be between 6 and 10 inches from the Hope Cutoff to Seward, O’Brien said, and 10 to 18 inches was expected in total for Whittier, Portage and Turnagain Pass.

Snow tapered off in the western Kenai Peninsula by Wednesday afternoon. In total, the storm was expected to drop 1 to 7 inches on the area since it started on Tuesday, O’Brien said.