Snowfall totals since early Tuesday morning are 12 to 15 inches. Today's avalanche hazard is moderate above an elevation of 9,000 feet and low below that elevation. Yesterday a snowboarder triggered a shallow slab avalanche on a southeast aspect of Angle Mountain. Skiers also reported that a cornice failed on a northeast aspect of Breccia Peak and triggered some pockets of wind slab in the steep terrain below that cornice. A snow boarder who was caught in a slide on a south aspect of Mt. Taylor, near Teton Pass, is missing and believed to be buried. Teton County Search and Rescue volunteers will resume rescue operations this morning. Humans who venture into steep upper elevation avalanche starting zones could trigger small to large slab avalanches. Today's rescue operations and the Covid-19 pandemic are straining our communities rescue capabilities and our public health resources. The public is urged to be extremely cautious in the backcountry.
At the higher elevations dense slab avalanches formed by southwest to west winds can be triggered by the weight of a single person on steep avalanche prone slopes. These slabs could be one to two feet deep.
( Discussion is generated from the previous day's afternoon forecast. )Some light snowfall is likely tonight and is expected to favor the southern portion of our forecast region. On Thursday cloud cover will be diminishing. Snow showers are expected and it will be cold. Temperatures will drop into the single digits and teens overnight and rise into the low 20’s in the mountains and into the upper 20’s and low 30’s in the valleys. Winds will westerly at 10 to 20 miles per hour. Stronger gusts are possible in the Salt River and Wyoming Ranges.These are somber times. Our sincere condolences are extended to all involved in today’s avalanche accident. There have been three other incidents of skiers getting caught by avalanches in the past two days. Humans who venture into steep avalanche prone slopes at the upper elevations could trigger small to large slab avalanches. These slabs are expected to slowly become less sensitive to human triggers as they settle and gain strength. These dense slabs could be up to two feet deep. The general avalanche hazard is expected to be moderate above an elevation of 9,000 feet on Thursday and low below that elevation where avalanche hazards may be found in isolated terrain features.
