Regions
Northwest Inland.
Watch out for locally heavier snowfall amounts on Thursday.
Confidence
Moderate - Intensity of incoming weather systems is uncertain
Weather Forecast
Hudson Bay (1500m):TPres -4; Wind 6-11 West; Precip yesterday 2mmHungry Hill (820m):HN24 2mm/cm; TMin -12; TMax +4; TPres -10Telkwa (1660m):Tsai Ck (1370m):Approx 25mm during last storm that ended in the eve of Mar 11. TPres -8.Tr on Sandra's table, Sky BKN; Smithers Cam: sky looks CLR.
Avalanche Summary
Few observers in the field Monday but reports are consistent with a natural avalanche cycle of storm slabs and wind slab up to size 2.
Snowpack Summary
The region is expected to receive 10-15 Wednesday night through Thursday, which will add to the previous 15 to 30 cm of storm snow accumulations since Monday. This new snow rests on previously wind hammered snow, sun crusts (on solar aspects), and sugary facets. February's cold weather weakened the upper- and mid-snowpack. In some sheltered areas, 20-50 cm of the snowpack was faceting, or sits on facets (sugary snow),In the south of the region, the lower snowpack is generally strong.
Problems
Wind Slabs
Wind Slab avalanches are the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind. Wind typically transports snow from the upwind sides of terrain features and deposits snow on the downwind side. Wind slabs are often smooth and rounded and sometimes sound hollow, and can range from soft to hard. Wind 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.