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Avalanche Forecast

Archived

Feb 27th, 2024–Feb 28th, 2024

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

Regions

South Coast Inland, Birkenhead, Duffey, South Chilcotin, Stein, Taseko.

Very dangerous avalanche conditions exist at higher elevations. Avoid all avalanche terrain.

Widespread natural avalanche activity is expected with heavy snowfall and strong winds.

Confidence

High

Avalanche Summary

On Monday, a size 2 skier accidental persistent slab was reported north of Pemberton. This avalanche occurred on a north aspect at 1800 m and failed on a weak layer of preserved surface hoar.

Several remotely triggered persistent avalanches were reported up to size two throughout the region. This is a clear sign the persistent weak layer is primed for human-triggering.

Evidence of a size 3, persistent slab avalanches was observed in the Duffey area.

Snowpack Summary

Storm snow accumulates over wind-affected surfaces and old wind slabs in exposed areas and settling snow in sheltered areas.

Multiple weak layers exist in the upper and mid snowpack. The most concerning weak layer is a widespread crust down 20 to 80 cm with a weak layer of facets or isolated surface hoar above this crust. This problematic layering is very concerning with recent large avalanche activity attributed to it.

Weather Summary

Tuesday Night

Partly cloudy with 2 to 8 cm of snow. 20 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -10 °C. Freezing levels remain at valley bottom.

Wednesday

Cloudy with 20 to 35 cm of snow. 30 to 40 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature rises to -4 °C. Freezing level rises to 1200 m throughout the day.

Thursday

Partly cloudy with 0 to 5 cm of snow. 10 to 25 km/h southwest ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C. Freezing levels around 800 m.

Friday

A mix of sun and cloud with 1 to 3 cm of snow. 20 to 30 km/h south ridgetop wind. Treeline temperature -8 °C. Freezing levels around 800 m.

More details can be found in the Mountain Weather Forecast.

Terrain and Travel Advice

  • Avoid all avalanche terrain during periods of heavy loading from new snow, wind, or rain.
  • Watch for fresh storm slabs building throughout the day.
  • Storm slab size and sensitivity to triggering will likely increase through the day.
  • If triggered, storm slabs in-motion may step down to deeper layers and result in very large avalanches.

Problems

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.

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.