Hochschwab Mountains

Considerable danger: wet-snow + glide-snow avalanches

Considerable danger: wet-snow + glide-snow avalanches

When rainfall set in, danger of naturally triggered wet-snow and glide-snow avalanches will increase in all aspects. Most releases will be of medium size, but also large avalanches cannot be ruled out in isolated cases, particularly when an avalanche fractures down to the thoroughly wet inner snowpack. At low altitudes where there is less snow, slides can be expected on steep hillsides. In addition, awful backcountry touring conditions prevail, with next-to-no visibility.

During the day on Wednesday up to 50 cm of snow is expected in the Northern Alps, up to 25 cm in the northern Niedere Tauern. As of evening and during the coming night, as the snowfall level ascends rain will fall into the new snow, which will make the snowpack even more thoroughly wet.

The Eastern Alps lie in the path of a westerly high-altitude air current. On Wednesday evening a warm front will sweep over the land and bring heavy precipitation to Northern Alps and Niedere Tauern. Temperatures will swiftly rise and with them, the snowfall level: it will rise to over 2000 m on Thursday. The mountains will disappear in heavy fog, the rainfall will be intermittently heavy accompanied by storm-strength W/NW winds. Temperatures will rise by midday to +3 degrees at 2000 m, +5 degrees at 1500 m. On Thursday night, the rain will gradually slacken off, the clouds being to disperse from the west and it will turn increasingly sunny. The stormy westerly winds will diminish in velocity during the daytime but it will remain extremely mild (up to +8 degrees at 2000 m).

After most of the potential wet-snow avalanches have discharged on Thursday, avalanche danger will decrease swiftly. One theme will persist: glide-snow avalanches react to rain impact with a certain delay.