Rätikon West

Fresh snow and drifts prone to triggering

Fresh snow and drifts prone to triggering

Fresh fallen snow and snowdrift accumulations are easily triggered. Slab avalanchess can be triggered by minimum additional loading and grow to medium-sized releases. Settling noises when treading the snowpack and fractures on the surface are indicators of imminent danger. Danger zones occur in wind-loaded steep terrain, behind sharp drops in the landscape, in gullies and bowls. Particularly in high-altitude west, north and east-facing slopes, avalanches can fracture down to ground-level layers of the snowpack and grow to large size. In very steep terrain, also loose-snow avalanches are possible.

Widespread up to 30cm of fresh snow frequently lies deposited atop soft layers of fresh snow. Amid intermittently strong winds it will be transported and will generated new snowdrift masses. They are prone to triggering. Fresh snow and drifts often lie deposited atop soft layers of fresh fallen snow from precious days and blanket older drifts. The mid-part of the snowpack consists of well-consolidated, compact layers which in shady slopes blanket a poorly-structured snowpack fundament.

Often limited visibility due to fog and remaining snow shower. During the daytime hours, slight improvement in weather conditions with a few sunny intervals, especially in the Bregenzerwald mountains. But visibility remains poor. Temperature at 2000m: from -11 to -7 degrees; at 3000m: -16 to -11 degrees. Moderate to brisk easterly winds at high altitude.

To start with, no significant change