Avalanche Forecast

The warm sector of the storm will be over the Mt. Hood area on Monday with a break in the storm continuing for another day, further allowing recent very large wind and large storm slabs time to heal. However, this is not a time to let your guard down. Significant amounts of snow have fallen throughout the storm cycle. This much snow demands respect. Avoid steep open slopes where avalanches can start.

Near and above treeline wind slabs are very large and have proven destructive. The largest of these slabs may require a very large trigger such as a cornice and will be very large in size. Any avalanche will entrain additional snow, becoming larger and travel farther than you might anticipate. Avoid avalanche terrain where avalanches my start, run, or stop. Rain on Sunday morning should have reduced the danger of triggering a wind slab near treeline.

Below treeline moist surface snow will still be able to produce loose wet avalanches. You are most likely to trigger these avalanches on steeper slopes. Although loose wet avalanches may be slower moving, they may push you into terrain traps where consequences of an avalanche are increased.

A relative break in the action was seen from late morning onward on Sunday after a long and stormy period which has impacted the Mt Hood area since January 17th leaving 30 inches of settled storm snow over the most recent crust layer. Saturday and Sunday featured more intense precipitation, significant warming temperatures, and strong winds created very dangerous avalanche conditions and natural avalanches in many areas.

The break in the weather allowed good visibility of multiple very large artillery-triggered wind slabs which entrained lots of wet snow and even in one case knocked down timber.

Rain on Saturday morning was followed by cooling, creating a thin, breakable crust in some areas.

Winds throughout this active weather pattern redistributed snow forming deep and firm wind slabs on lee slopes near and above treeline.  

Observations

Mt Hood Meadows Pro Patrol Sunday reported multiple very large artillery-released avalanches with very deep crowns in the 10-20 ft range, running on steep NE and E-NE terrain above treeline and travelling very long distances, in one case snapping 20+ year old trees.

Mt Hood Meadows Patrol Saturday reported sensitive storm slabs which were entraining snow as they ran. A thin breakable rain crust formed in the morning to 5500 feet. By mid-day additional snow was falling at most elevations.

NWAC pro-observer Laura Greene was in the Newton Creek drainage Friday. She encountered low visibility with lots of new snow and wind transportation. Observations found 2.5 feet of storm snow.

On Wednesday, a professional ski patroller was caught, carried, and partially buried in an avalanche he triggered while on duty in a closed area of the Mt. Hood Meadows ski area (SS-AS-R2-D2-I). The avalanche released in an area known as God's Wall, running approximately 600 ft on the old/new snow interface. The bed surface was the firm 1/18 crust. Resources were dispatched immediately and the victim extricated after some difficulty due to low snow and open creeks. He was transported via ambulance to advanced care and is now discharged to recover from his injuries.