Avalanche
More videos of the triggered avalanche on Sunday at Alta Ski Area, UT, have emerged, with one showing a ski patroller being caught in the edges of the slide.
In the video embedded below, at around 14 secs, you can see a patroller getting swept away in the triggered slide.
https://twitter.com/ChaseThomason/status/1477775443591766017
Another view of the slide on East Greeley (Backside) at @AltaSkiArea this morning. This was triggered by ski patrol with explosives.
Video by @aha_rper pic.twitter.com/cOH5TWAn1F
— Utah Daily Snow (@WasatchSnow) January 2, 2022
There were others in the backcountry that did not require explosives. Even though the danger has dropped from High to Considerable and triggering these slides is a little harder to do, what hasn’t changed is the size and destructive, bone-crushing potential. There are many thin spots in the snow and many variations in the snowpack that means a human can easily one of these slides.
So…even though the likelihood of triggering one goes down, the consequences do not.
This is the situation in much of Utah. Stay on low-angle slopes or stay on south-facing.
