Wind Slabs
N
NE
E
SE
S
SW
W
NW
- Alpine
- Treeline
- Below treeline
- Likelihood
- Likely
- Size
- 1–4
Recent storm snow with strong winds will have built wind-slabs on lee slopes
Avalanche forecast
View on mapSouth Coast
Mar 15 – 16, 2015Avalanche Canada
Archived · expired 12 years ago
Avalanche danger
Tue
Wed
Alpine
3 · Considerable
Treeline
2 · Moderate
Below
1 · Low
Highlights
Newly formed winds slabs will present a high hazard for some time. Careful route selection is critical at this time
Avalanche problems
Cornices
NNEESESSWWNW- Alpine
- Treeline
- Below treeline
- Likelihood
- Unlikely - Possible
- Size
- 1–4
New storm snow with strong winds will have added more mass to already ripe cornices. Warm spring-like temperatures may encourage cornice failures.
Confidence
Fair - Due to the number and quality of field observations
Weather Forecast
A Pacific frontal system will pass through the extreme southern portion of BC today ( Sunday) and into early Monday leaving us with 10 to 20cm of snow at higher elevations and rain below1200m. Moderate to strong winds above 1500m will accompany this system. Tuesday should see some clearing skies and very light precipitation late in the day, then more clearing for Wednesday.
Avalanche Summary
1 size 2 storm slab observed on a NW aspect in steep alpine terrain. Limited observations from yesterday due to low ceilings and poor visibility.
Snowpack Summary
10 to 20cm of recent storm snow now lies on a variety of crusts and old wind slabs above treeline. A crust that was beginning to break down and facet was buried around March 5 and may be the one to look for in the snowpack. Much of the new snow will have been redistributed by strong winds during parts of the storm. Below treeline the snowpack has had numerous warming and rain events and should be bombproof for the most part. Rain has recently been reported to ridge tops in the Coquihalla region. Solar aspects have been reported as isothermal in some areas below 1600m.