Allgäu Alps West

Winter sports enthusiasts beware: high avalanche danger widespread

Winter sports enthusiasts beware: high avalanche danger widespread

The large amounts of fresh snow and drifts are prone to triggering. Avalanches can easily be triggered by one single winter sports enthusiast in all aspects. In isolated cases, also naturally triggered avalanches can be expected. Exposed areas can be placed at risk. Danger zones occur on steep slopes, behind drops in the landscape and in wind-loaded gullies and bowls. Frequency and spread of avalanche prone locations increase with ascending altitude. Whumpf noises and fractures which appear when treading upon the snowpack, as well as freshly released avalanches are alarm signals. Activities in outlying terrain are currently dangerous.

By Friday midday an additional 10-20cm of fresh snow, locally more, is anticipated. The large amounts of fresh fallen snow continually are transported in varying directions, new snowdrift accumulations generated, but they are difficult to recognize since constantly getting blanketed with fresh snowfall. Bonding to the unfavorable snowpack is usually weak. Several large and very large avalanche releases from artificial (explosive) triggerings, remote triggerings and triggerings by winter sports enthusiasts confirm just how prone to triggering the snowpack is.

Nocturnal snowfall will taper off during the course of the day on Friday, will be only sporadic in afternoon. Visibility limited due to fog and clouds. Temperature at 2000m: -6 degrees; at 3000m: -11 degrees. Brisk to strong-velocity north-to-northeasterly winds at high altitudes.

The danger of naturally triggered avalanches is diminishing gradually. For winter sports enthusiasts the situation remains treacherous. As a result of the forecast higher temperatures, wet-snow and glide-snow avalanches will be possible particularly at low and intermediate altitudes.