Three people died in separate avalanche accidents in the past week, with a fourth in critical condition. We're not messing around: dial it back. Walk back in the door tonight.
- 2/18 Big Flat, Snake Creek Fatality — Snowmobiler. Preliminary report HERE.
- 2/19 Rock Garden, BCC Backcountry Fatality — 11-year-old skier. Preliminary report HERE.
- 2/21 Butler Basin, BCC Backcountry 1 Injured, 1 in Critical Condition — Backcountry skiers. Preliminary report HERE.
- 2/22 Caribou Basin, Snake Creek Fatality — Snowbiker. Preliminary report HERE.
It took some time to read through that long list, didn't it? Let's not add to it today. Our sincerest condolences are with all those impacted.
Yesterday, a partly sunny day with rising temperatures from recent days began to heat up the surface snow, with the beginnings of wet snow issues reported. Winds shifted from out of the SW to more westerly overnight, blowing in the 30s mph at ridgelines with gusts as high as 65 mph on the highest peaks.
Today, westerly winds are continuing to build as a wet and warm system arrives on SW flow. While the timing of when the precipitation will arrive is uncertain—late morning thourgh afternoon is our best guess—the freezing levels mean something a bit more certain: rain on snow. Freezing levels will start at 7800' this morning before rising to as high as 9800' feet this evening as precipitation rolls in. We can expect near 0.5" by tomorrow morning—and not a whole lot of snow.
Forecaster's Corner—If you get one thing out of today's forecast, I hope it's this: three people have died in less than a week in avalanche accidents, with a fourth in critical condition. When an avalanche fatality happens, it doesn’t just affect the victim and the partners present. An avalanche fatality has ripples throughout the victim’s family, through their community, through the rescuers who help bring them home. The lives and perspectives of each of the people who were with each of the avalanche victims during these accidents will be forever changed by tragedy. So I ask you today: is riding the steep slope worth that? Not only for you, but for those around you, and those in your community.
Where do we start? In the past week, nearly 60 avalanches have been reported to the UAC, with easily many more that we haven't heard of. In addition to the three fatalities this past week, avalanche accidents on Saturday included a close call/near miss in the Ant Knolls where a snowmobiler was caught and carried, fortunately ending up on top of the debris. The avalanche was up to three feet deep and 500 feet wide, and is shown in the photo below.
Photo of Saturday's avalanche in the Ant Knolls area [Photo: J Milligan]
