Beware - Avalanche Season is here

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Hey... important stuff so pay attention


Free Avalanche Awareness Clinic

* What: A free "Know Before You Go: Introduction to Avalanche Awareness" clinic.
* When: 7 p.m. Dec. 13.
* Where: REI, 3285 E. 3300 South, East Millcreek.
* Details: The clinic includes a video of avalanches, instruction on the basics of recognizing avalanche terrain and signs of snow instability, safe travel in the backcountry, rescue equipment and self-rescue methods.



Beware - avalanche season is here
Danger level expected to rise as more snow falls this weekend
By Brett Prettyman
The Salt Lake Tribune

With memories of the most deadly avalanche season in state history still fresh in their minds, forecasters at the Utah Avalanche Center hope the public will remember the dangers as this season moves past its initial stages.

Backcountry skiers unintentionally triggered three snowslides in the Cottonwood canyons Thursday and officials expect more and larger avalanches in coming days as more snow falls.

"Going into this weekend we'll see avalanches become more widespread and larger," said Bruce Tremper, director of the Forest Service Utah Avalanche Center (UAC).

A smoggy period before Thanksgiving formed some weak layers on the snow surface, he said. "Now, we are slamming down a dense slab of snow on top of that."

UAC posted an avalanche danger of "moderate" on its daily forecast Friday morning, but Tremper believes the rating will move to, and remain, "considerable" during the weekend.

The international standard ratings of avalanche danger are: low, moderate, considerable, high and extreme. Considerable means natural avalanches are possible and that human-triggered slides are probable.

Eight people, all men of an average age of 35, died in Utah slides last season. The deaths included snowboarders, skiers, snowshoers and snowmobilers. The previous record for avalanche deaths in Utah was six, set in the 1996-97 and 2000-01 seasons. The state averages four fatalities by snowslides each season.

Utah's deaths accounted for nearly one-third of all avalanche fatalities in the United States in the 2004-05 season. According to UAC statistics, backcountry recreationists unintentionally triggered 158 avalanches; 69 people were caught in the slide - 19 of them fully or partially buried - and 13 were moderately or severely injured in the incidents.

The last recorded slide causing injuries last season was reported on April 30, when two men trying to clear snow off a cabin near Brighton were buried, but they survived. The first reported slide this season occurred Nov. 14 near Alta.

A natural slide was reported in the Provo area mountains on Nov. 30 and a snowcat triggered a slide in the Ogden-area mountains on the same day.

Get a daily forecast

The Utah Avalanche Center posts a daily forecast available on its Web site http://www.avalanche.org/~uac/ and on a telephone voice recording at 801-364-1581. Daily e-mail updates also are available and can be set up by visiting the Web site, where a list of upcoming avalanche classes can also be viewed.

[dbessee]

Here's the CAIC (Colorado Avalanche Info Center) site for those venturing further east:

http://geosurvey.state.co.us/avalanche/


Stay safe out there!

Don