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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 28th, 2024–Feb 29th, 2024

Alpine
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Treeline
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Below Treeline
Natural and human triggered avalanches likely.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Alpine
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Treeline
Natural avalanches possible, human triggered probable.
Below Treeline
Natural avalanches unlikely, human triggered possible.

Regions

Kootenay Boundary, Bonnington, Grohman, Kootenay Pass, Norns, Rossland, Ymir, Crawford, Moyie, St. Mary, Kokanee, Valhalla.

Avoid avalanche terrain.

We are expecting widespread, large natural avalanche activity.

Stick to low angle terrain with no overhead hazard.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

Numerous natural, skier, and remotely triggered avalanches up to size 3 have been reported in the past few days throughout the region. All avalanches slid on layers in the upper snowpack.

We expect avalanche activity to increase in size and frequency on Thursday.

Snowpack Summary

Up to 60 cm of new snow will have fallen by mid day on Thursday. This new snow will form touchy storm slabs.

A layer of facets, surface hoar and a crust is down up to 50 cm.

A widespread crust formed in early February is buried roughly 40 to 80 cm and extends up to 2400 m. Facets have been found above this crust. This layer has produced many concerning avalanches across the province.

The lower snowpack is generally well-settled and strong.

Weather Summary

Wednesday Night

Cloudy with up to 40 cm of new snow. 40 to 60 km/h south alpine wind. Freezing level rising to 1700 m.

Thursday

Cloudy with up to 20 cm of new snow. 20 to 50 km/h southwest alpine wind. Treeline temperature -3°C.

Friday

Mostly cloudy with 10 cm of new snow. 15 to 35 km/h south alpine wind. Treeline temperature -6°C.

Saturday

Mostly cloudy with up to 5 cm of new snow. 10 to 30 km/h southeast alpine wind. Treeline temperature -7°C.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Make conservative terrain choices and avoid overhead hazard.
  • Remote triggering is a concern, watch out for adjacent and overhead slopes.
  • Storm slab size and sensitivity to triggering will likely increase through the day.

Problems

Storm Slabs

Storm Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer (a slab) of new snow that breaks within new snow or on the old snow surface. Storm-slabs typically last between a few hours and few days (following snowfall). Storm-slabs that form over a persistent weak layer (surface hoar, depth hoar, or near-surface facets) may be termed Persistent Slabs or may develop into Persistent Slabs.

Persistent Slabs

Persistent Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) in the middle to upper snowpack, when the bond to an underlying persistent weak layer breaks. Persistent layers include: surface hoar, depth hoar, near-surface facets, or faceted snow. Persistent weak layers can continue to produce avalanches for days, weeks or even months, making them especially dangerous and tricky. As additional snow and wind events build a thicker slab on top of the persistent weak layer, this avalanche problem may develop into a Deep Persistent Slab.