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Avalanche death toll reaches 26; worst winter since 1965

CAA says to exercise caution in B.C. backcountry After a rash of recent avalanche deaths in B.C., the operations manager at the Canadian Avalanche Association is encouraging people to lower their expectations for adventure in the backcountry.

CAA says to exercise caution in B.C. backcountry

After a rash of recent avalanche deaths in B.C., the operations manager at the Canadian Avalanche Association is encouraging people to lower their expectations for adventure in the backcountry.

"Play it safe this year," said Evan Manners.

"Nature is dictating that be the rule."

This season has been one of deadliest winters for snow slides in B.C. in almost four decades. There have been 26 deaths to date; six of those have occurred in the last week and a half.

It’s the worst year since 1965 when there were 28 fatalities. On top of that the season isn’t over yet said Manners.

Even in the Coast Mountains around Whistler, a range which sees the fewest avalanche-related deaths, there is reason to exercise more caution that usual this year.

"It’s a year where things are different," said Manners.

"It’s still not time to stay out of the mountains but it’s a time to have an extra level of caution."

Generally the Coast Mountains don’t see the kind of fatal avalanche accidents that have wreaked havoc in the Interior this year. The snow pack on the coast is less likely to have persistent instabilities in the old layers.

But Manners says even in the safer Coast Mountains there are still instabilities.

Veteran avalanche forecaster at Whistler-Blackcomb Jan Tindle said the avalanche danger in the Coast Mountains was "moderate" at the beginning of the week because of the cooling weather.

"The snow came in really warm and it even rained in a lot of places so that when that freezes it tightens up the snow pack," she said.

"You can imagine it just gloms it all together."

But any new snow will most likely bring the danger levels back up again.

Even with all the controls in place within the ski boundaries at Whistler-Blackcomb, a very small avalanche was recently triggered about two weeks ago by a skier in the Christmas Trees zone on Whistler.

Tindle said this is one of a handful of small avalanches, which occur in bounds every year.

"So either the ski cut in or the bomb didn’t do what it was supposed to do or sometimes... it’s possible for (the snow) to reload after the control is done," she said, adding that is was snowing quite a lot on the day the avalanche took place.

The in bounds slide was nothing in scale compared to the events which have rocked various parts of the Interior over the past week and a half.

The recent avalanches, spanning from Fernie to Invermere, have had common elements.

All have involved deep instabilities in the snow pack dating back to a weak layer in November.

"When you have these persistent instabilities that are very deep, that’s when you have an avalanche that’s very large," said Manners.

There has also been a lot of snow falling in recent weeks throughout the province, adding weight to these unstable layers. More than 30 per cent of the snow pack has come from late season dumps.

Under these conditions there’s a higher likelihood of a human triggering the slide, and when that snow slides, it’s usually very large.

"The burials are deeper, which compromises the ability of a person to stay alive underneath, and it takes longer to get them out," said Manners.

On Monday, March 31, a couple snowmobiling near Fort. St. James in north central B.C. was caught in a slide. The man made it out alive. The woman died in the avalanche.

Five days earlier, on Thursday, March 27, a slide was triggered in the Brewer Creek area of the Purcell Mountains southwest of Invermere. One snowmobiler out of a dozen in the party died in the slide.

The day before that, on Wednesday, March 26, four people died in two separate slides.

The first slide, in the Selwyn area near Valemount, killed a French heli-skier.

The second slide near Fernie claimed the lives of three sledders.

These slides have come on the heels of two high-profile avalanches which each killed seven people near Revelstoke earlier this year.

Those avalanches garnered the attention of the international media.

Recently, at least three major American magazines, Men’s Journal, Outside and Wired, featured stories about avalanches. The cover of the April issue of Outside has the headline: "Killer avalanche: The inside story of the B.C. disaster."

"(The magazines) like covering the risk-taking sports and when you’re travelling in an avalanche terrain there is always a level of risk involved," said Tindle.

"But hopefully the exposure gets the message out a bit and gets people thinking when they go out into the backcountry."

By all accounts most of the people caught in the most recent fatal slides had taken all the normal precautions before heading into the backcountry. They had checked the local avalanche bulletins to get the avalanche rating danger and they were wearing the essential gear to help save their lives.

The CAA posts three bulletins every week rating the avalanche danger. The system is based on an international standard used in many different countries, like Switzerland and Germany. The ratings range from low to extreme.

Most fatal slides happen when there is a rating of considerable – halfway between low and moderate on one end of the spectrum and high and extreme on the other end.

Many people don’t go into the mountains when the rating is high or extreme because the weather generally isn’t as good. In addition, when the ratings are high or extreme it’s easier to perceive any imminent avalanche danger – you can see avalanches in the area and hear cracks in the snow.

But with fresh powder and blue skies beckoning, more people are drawn to the backcountry even if the rating is considerable.

"There’s some confusion among the public on what considerable really means," said Manners.

Considerable means that natural avalanches are possible and human-triggered avalanches are probable.

And if there is a big slide, all the avalanche gear in the world may not help.

"The thing is though, you can carry all the stuff but if you’re buried more than a metre and a half deep, the chances are you’re not going to get dug out in time," said Tindle.

"You’ve got to be smart about where you’re recreating, the types of slopes you’re on. If the danger is considerable or high you should choose to be in terrain where there probably isn’t going to be an avalanche because even if you’ve got the equipment it’s not necessarily going to save you."

According to the CAA the forecast of avalanche danger in the South Coast Region up until Wednesday evening was considerable in the alpine, and moderate at the treeline and below.

The bulletin states:

"Cornices are the major hazard right now. A large cornice fall may be the greatest stress an avalanche slope can receive and could cause a deep slab release on weak layers we thought were long gone. Avoid slopes with cornices above them and consider saving your cliff hucking and big air for the kicker you build yourself."

Log on to www.avalanche.ca where there is also an avalanche bulletin for the backcountry near Whistler-Blackcomb.