Disasters · Southeast Alaska seasCape Edgecumbe storm warning: 70-knot gusts and 38-foot seas forecastWritten November 9, 2026 at 1:22 PM UTCWatchTranscript0:07Forecast gusts of seventy knots threaten vessels off southeast Alaska.0:11Winds and seas could capsize or damage boats, and crews face decisions about leaving0:15port or changing course.0:16The offshore storm warning covers fifteen hours on Monday, with gale warnings before0:20and afterward.0:21The question for crews is how long vessel-threatening conditions will continue.0:25The offshore warning covers waters between Cape Edge Combi and Cape Spencer, from0:29fifteen to eighty nautical miles out.0:31The neighboring nearshore zone extends out to fifteen nautical miles.0:34Those two bands have different forecasts and storm warning schedules.0:37Offshore southeast winds are forecast at forty to sixty knots with gust to seventy0:41and seas of thirty one to thirty-six feet.0:43The storm period runs from three in the morning to six in the evening Monday,0:47November ninth.0:48All times here are Alaska Standard Time.0:50The offshore alert has an expiration field that falls Sunday night before the storm0:54begins, but its written schedule and coded hazard times agree on Monday's fifteen0:58hour storm period.1:00That early message expiration doesn't mean the dangerous weather ends Sunday night.1:04The offshore gale begins Sunday evening.1:06A small craft advisory runs until nine with seas of eight to nine feet.1:10From nine until three Monday morning, southeast winds are forecast at thirty, five1:14to forty five knots, gusting to sixty, five with seas of fifteen to twenty feet.1:18The separate offshore coastal forecast builds seas from ten feet Sunday night to1:21twenty-eight feet late.1:22West winds of fifteen knots turn southeast at thirty five during the evening.1:26Then increase to fifty late.1:28Rain accompanies that deterioration before Monday's peak.1:37Monday's coastal forecast puts offshore southeast winds at fifty-five knots with1:41gust to seventy.1:42It calls for morning rain, then showers and a slight chance of afternoon1:46thunderstorms.1:47Its sea forecast is higher than the marine warning issued ten minutes later.1:50The coastal forecast calls for thirty-eight foot seas Monday.1:53The marine warning gives thirty-one to thirty-six feet for its storm period.1:57That's two feet above the warning's upper value.1:59In separate forecasts for the same offshore zone, no explanation reconciles them.2:04Both numbers describe expected conditions.2:06They don't show waves already measured or an observed increase.2:09The forecast defines seas as the average height of the highest one, third of2:13combined wind waves and swell.2:15Individual waves vary.2:16The wind figures describe the predominant expected speed and direction, with gusts2:21listed separately.2:22Crews are being advised to stay in port, change course, or secure their vessels2:26before encountering severe conditions.2:27The danger includes capsizing vessel damage and reduced visibility.2:31Those decisions need to account for the gales surrounding the storm period too.2:35The nearshore storm period starts six hours later than the offshore one in the2:38updated warning.2:39For waters out to fifteen nautical miles, the later schedule runs from nine Monday2:43morning to six that evening, a nine-hour window.2:46The earlier nearshore alert put the storm between five in the morning and five in2:49the afternoon Monday.2:50Its message expiration falls before that end point two.2:53The later warning shifts the storm window to nine through six.2:56These are different products from the same office.2:58The nearshore coastal forecast specifically calls for southeast winds of forty.3:02Five knots Monday, gust to sixty, five seas of thirty, two feet in rain.3:06The later warning gives southeast winds of thirty, five to fifty, five knots, gust3:10to sixty, five in seas of twenty, six to thirty, one feet during its storm period.3:14Nearshore seas reach twenty to twenty five feet in the gale forecast from three to3:18nine Monday morning.3:19East winds run thirty, five to forty, five knots, gusting to sixty, five.3:23Before that, a small craft advisory carries southeast winds of twenty to thirty3:26knots, gusts to forty and eight to thirteen foot seas.3:29The coastal forecast also tracks a sharp nearshore buildup Sunday night.3:32Southwest winds of ten knots become southeast at twenty five in the evening, then3:36east at forty late with gust to fifty five.3:39Seas build from nine to eighteen feet, with rain arriving late.3:43Nearshore seas remain at eighteen feet in Tuesday's coastal forecast, with southerly3:47swell and rain.3:48Southeast winds are forecast at twenty-five knots, gusting to forty.3:51That follows Monday night, when southeast winds ease from forty to twenty.3:55Five knots in seas subside from thirty, one to twenty, two feet.3:58The nearshore warning keeps another gale in place from six Monday evening to4:02midnight.4:02Southeast winds of thirty to forty knots can gust to fifty five with seas of twenty4:07four to twenty nine feet.4:09A small craft advisory then continues until six Tuesday morning.4:13That final nearshore advisory still forecasts seas of eighteen to twenty-three feet.4:17East winds of twenty to thirty knots can gust to forty.4:20The step down in warning category leaves crews facing large seas into Tuesday4:24morning.4:25The offshore coastal forecast also keeps substantial winds and seas after Monday's4:29peak.4:29Monday night, southeast winds diminish from forty five to thirty-five knots, while4:33seas fall from thirty six to twenty-four feet with rain.4:36Tuesday still brings southeast winds of thirty knots, gust to forty-five and4:40nineteen foot seas.4:41Subsequent forecasts still need to reconcile the differing sea heights and nearshore4:45schedules.4:45But the offshore warning already lays out dangerous conditions through the following4:49night.4:49The fifteen-hour storm window sits between two gale periods, rather than marking the4:53full stretch of hazardous weather.4:55The offshore storm warning ends at six Monday evening, but a gale warning continues4:59until six Tuesday morning.5:00Southeast winds of thirty, five to forty, five knots can still gust to sixty, with5:05seas of twenty nine to thirty four feet.Read the articleStory timelineHeyDex
