'The year to be cautious': Avalanche safety expert weighs in on B.C.'s deadly avalanche season
'The year to be cautious': Avalanche safety expert weighs in on B.C.'s deadly avalanche season
Dangerous avalanche conditions in B.C.'s backcountry have turned deadly — with five people killed in the province this season alone.
Avalanche safety expert and associate professor at Simon Fraser University Pascal Haegeli joined CTV Morning Live Friday, to discuss the reason behind the deadly conditions.
"The issue is that we had the really shallow snowpack in the early season in early November, and then we had a really cold period…that changes the snow crystals in the snowpack and generally creates large crystals that have a hard time bonding to each other," Haegeli explained.
"So we basically now have this bed of marbles at the bottom of the snowpack and a solid snowpack overtop…that's just not a good setup for avalanche conditions."
Haegeli said this has been the worst avalanche season he's seen in more than two decades.
"It's predominantly in the Interior and the Rocky Mountains where it's been really challenging," he said. "Here on the coast, it's a little better. But I would still advise that this is probably not the winter to ski big lines or snowmobile in really big terrain…it's the year to be cautious."
Nelson Police Department Const. Wade Tittemore became B.C.'s first avalanche death of the season when he got caught up in one while skiing in the backcountry near Kaslo on Jan. 9. A second officer, Const. Mathieu Nolet was skiing with Tittemore at the time and was rushed to hospital with severe internal injuries. Nolet died nearly two weeks later.
Both officers were off duty when the avalanche occurred, and were experienced backcountry enthusiasts equipped with probes and beacons, according to the City of Nelson.
Another person died after two snowmobilers were caught in an avalanche near Valemount on Saturday. According to Avalanche Canada, one person managed to ride away from the avalanche, while the other was fully buried.
The latest avalanche deaths in the province occurred on Monday, when twin brothers Timothy and Jonathan Kinsley from the U.S. were heli-skiing near Revelstoke.
The pair was with a heli-skiing guide near Mount McCrae, in an area known as Chocolate Bunnies, when the avalanche struck and buried them in the snow.
Their guide, an employee of CMH Heli-Skiing, was hospitalized in stable condition.
“That should really be a sign to everybody…that even guides get caught,” Haegeli said, adding that those hoping to head out into the backcountry should be extra cautious.
"Just be aware that this is a very different winter. So don't rely on past experiences from past years of what's acceptable and what's not," he said.
Haegeli recommends that people check Avalanche Canada's forecasts before they head out, to avoid the possibility of getting caught up in an avalanche.
"The best thing to do is not to get into one in the first place," he said. "But if you are in one, try to protect yourself, try to get out as quickly as you realize that you're in one because once you're in an avalanche…you don't have any control of where you're going."
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) arrested an 18-year-old man from the Saint-Laurent borough of Montreal on Thursday morning in connection with allegations of terrorism.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he feels it is his role to see the Safe Third Country Agreement upgraded, in order to make sure Canadians can continue to have confidence in Canada's immigration system.
Han Dong has announced he will be sitting as an independent MP after being the subject of allegations involving interference by China in Canadian affairs.
The largest recorded earthquake in Alberta's history was not a natural event, but most likely caused by disposal of oilsands wastewater, new research has concluded.
United States President Joe Biden is set to deliver a speech to Parliament on Friday, becoming the ninth president to address Canadians in Ottawa. Here's a look back at past presidential speeches and the eras that defined them.
A federal source says the coming budget will detail how the Liberals plan to go after hidden or unexpected consumer fees, following the United States announcing its own crackdown on these charges.
A group of lawyers is racing against the clock to get Canadian children and their foreign-born mothers onto a plane that will soon be dispatched to repatriate detainees from prison camps in northeast Syria.
Canada needs a 'Conservative renaissance,' former prime minister Stephen Harper said Wednesday, but he cautioned that Pierre Poilievre should wait until an election before telling Canadians how he might run the country.
A well-known historic site and museum in Victoria is closing its doors due to what it calls a lack of funding. On Wednesday morning, Point Ellice House Museum and Gardens announced it was closing down effective immediately.
TBA was started last year by long-time right-wing activist David Parker. It began as a way to push back against COVID-19 measures, but has since drastically grown.
Authorities say charges have been laid against a Calgary resident in connection with the attempted importation of 300 kilograms of methamphetamine at the Coutts, Alta., border crossing.
The largest recorded earthquake in Alberta's history was not a natural event, but most likely caused by disposal of oilsands wastewater, new research has concluded.
Wearing her husband's police jacket, Ashley Ryan walked to centre ice at a charity hockey game in Spruce Grove, Alta., Wednesday night. She, a paramedic, then dropped the puck on the matchup that Brett was planning to referee.
An Ontario mother and father say their four-year-old was recently diagnosed with a brain tumour after doctors believed his symptoms were a flu-like virus for months.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) arrested an 18-year-old man from the Saint-Laurent borough of Montreal on Thursday morning in connection with allegations of terrorism.
After a number of parents were left frustrated this week over not getting their kids into swimming lessons, the City of Winnipeg confirmed a drop in the number of courses it offers.
The Government of Saskatchewan is committing over $20 million for online learning as part of its record $3.1 billion education budget for the 2023-2024 fiscal year.
Regina’s Mayor Sandra Masters said money in Wednesday’s 2023-24 provincial budget for revenue sharing is something that will be a great injection into the city’s own budget.
Two staff members who were stabbed at a Halifax-area high school have been released from hospital, while the student accused in the stabbing remains in custody.
A Transportation Safety Board of Canada report has linked the fatal sinking of a Nova Scotia scallop dragger in 2020 to years of federal inaction on the imposition of stricter stability standards for fishing vessels.
At least four vehicles were involved in a collision at the intersection of Wonderland Road south and Commissioners Road west at around 9:40 a.m. on Thursday.
A fog advisory that covered most of southern Ontario has been lifted. Poor driving conditions were reported Thursday morning throughout the region as dense fog spread across area roads.
Plans are in the works to connect the existing Oneida Water Supply System to the Lake Huron Primary Water Supply System with Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) investing over $43 million to support the design and construction phases of this project.
A Tottenham woman faces impaired driving charges for allegedly blowing four times over the legal limit after crashing into a vehicle in a school parking lot.
The resurrection of Zellers is officially underway in Waterloo region with the Cambridge location opening its doors to a handful of eager fans who lined up ahead of the store's official reopening.
