It is Alaska in January and the winter weather in one form or another just wont quit. None of what were dealing with is necessarily out of the ordinary for Alaska but the cold seems to be lingering around for awhile.

I wanted to join you on air today and on social media just to go over it... I never mean to alarm, I just like people to be aware since I know weather greatly affects how we plan to go about our days and despite being a full time staff of 1, I want to make sure you have the info you need, whenever you need it and are prepared.

IASD Superintendent John Bruce has told me that the Nikolai school will not hold any classes on Monday due to heat and water issues. We will let you know if there are any future school cancellations for Nikolai as that may be likely to happen.

The coldest official temperature in McGrath this weekend was 47 below zero at 10am today although many in McGrath were recording colder temperatures including Sarah McClellan Welch recording 57 below at 9am at her house and Loretta Maillielle noting 50 below at her house

There's a winter storm warning for the entire KSKO listening area in the west central interior. The Sleetmute and Crooked Creek area has one in effect until tomorrow night while everyone else including the Upper Kuskokwim and GASH Villages are under a winter storm warning until early Tuesday morning some time.

Sleetmute and environs were at 22 below about 3pm today and the snow is expected to kick in for them sometime tonight with the temperature rising to 8 below by early tomorrow morning... expect 2 to 4 inches of snow overnight tonight for Sleetmute, Red Devil and Crooked Creek with another couple inches daytime tomorrow and highs around 0, lows around the lower teens below zero. The snow is expected to continue for you folks through about late Tuesday morning.

Monday and Tuesday will be warmer than the weekend was for Sleetmute Red Devil and Crooked Creek and while the second half of the week will be colder than the first half, even the lows Wednesday, Thursday and Friday will be warmer than the weekend highs just about.

The Upper Kuskokwim is up for a potential very minor walloping but it won't be the blizzard warning people in Bethel and closer to the cost are seeing.

The Upper Kuskokwim forecast is calling for snow tomorrow morning through Tuesday afternoon..... starting and ending a bit later then the Sleetmute area while also seeing the potential for more snow and colder temps. Expect 3 to 5 inches of snow for McGrath, Nikolai and Takotna daytime tomorrow and 2 to 4 inches tomorrow evening. There's no detail yet on the snowfall amount for Tuesday along the Upper Kuskokwim.

Temps for the Upper Kuskokwim are looking to be in the single digits below zero for highs Monday and Tuesday and lows in the lower teens tomorrow night. The temps get cold again with Tuesday night hitting into the mid 20s below zero.. and night time lows will stay there through the week and highs will stay in the mid teens below zero or so.

If you've been struggling because of our prolonged cold and the darkness, you are not alone and that is completely normal. Depression or anxiety caused by cold and darkness is a common occurence in Alaska over the winter. If you're struggling reach out to your local YKHC or SCF clinic for all the mental health resources available to you.

I'll be with you tomorrow from 7 to 9am and 12 to 3pm on KSKO to talk about, analyze and discuss the weather.