By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)/rdnewsNOW

be aware

Special Public Avalanche Warning in place for Alberta and B.C. mountains

Dec 30, 2022 | 1:03 PM

A Special Public Avalanche Warning (SPAW) is in place for recreational backcountry users in the B.C. interior and Alberta Rockies National Parks.

Issued Dec. 28, and updated Dec. 30, the warning is estimated to expire on Jan. 2.

“The snowpack is currently in a precarious state,” explains Simon Horton, senior forecaster for Avalanche Canada. “The storm cycles that hit western Canada over the past weekend added significant snow on top of an exceptionally weak lower snowpack. This has brought the conditions to a tipping point where dangerous avalanches are likely. While avalanche danger ratings may start to decrease as the weather improves, there will still be a chance of triggering a large avalanche.”

According to Avalanche Canada, the SPAW region includes most of B.C.’s Columbia Mountains, Glacier and Mount Revelstoke National Parks, as well as the Northern Rockies. The update adds Banff, Yoho, Kootenay, and Jasper National Parks to the warning.

The SPAW extends from the southern boundaries of the Purcell Wilderness Conservancy and Kokanee and Valhalla Provincial Parks to Williston Lake north of Pine Pass and Mackenzie. For a map of the SPAW region, click here.

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Avalanche Canada explains that the warning is in place because of a prolonged cold and dry start to the winter, which created a number of persistent weak layers in the snowpack across the interior ranges of B.C. The recent storm and warming temperatures have now destabilized that weak snowpack, making large, human-triggered avalanches likely.

Making conservative terrain choices can help manage this risk, Avalanche Canada notes.

“Sticking to lower angle slopes and choosing smaller objectives that minimize the consequences of an avalanche are examples of how to reduce the risk. Backcountry users should always check the avalanche forecast at www.avalanche.ca. Everyone in a backcountry party needs the essential rescue gear—transceiver, probe, and shovel—and the training to use it.”