Totes Gebirge South

Significant avalanche danger above the tree line!

Significant avalanche danger above the tree line!

The avalanche risk increases rapidly with altitude and is assessed as considerable above the tree line. The persistent weak layer problem is still present and is currently exacerbated by fresh wind slab. The avalanche prone locations are from north-west to south-east on slopes that have been blown in, in terrain adjacent to ridgelines and at the entrances to gullies and bowls. Medium-sized slab avalanches can be triggered by individuals.

Up to 30 cm of new fallen snow has fallen since Saturday, with a few centimetres more to come on Tuesday. Stormy north-westerly winds led to extensive drifting. Some of the fresh wind slab snow contains weak layers and the snow base, fundament is weakened by snow-covered surface hoar and floating snow.

The evening and night into Thursday will be increasingly cloudy, but there will still be no precipitation. Thursday will also start mainly dry. It may even clear up briefly in places. However, dense clouds will quickly gather from the south-west in the morning and the mountain peaks will become increasingly foggy. The temperature at an altitude of 2000 metres will be around -2 degrees during the day, with a marked cooling in the evening and during the night on Friday. Moderate winds from the south, becoming increasingly north-westerly to north-easterly in the evening.

Heavy snowfall is expected during the night from Thursday to Friday. The risk of avalanches is increasing.