AVALANCHE AWARENESS

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Idaho Fatalities by Gender, 1950 2007
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• 25-30 of avalanche victims die of trauma
  incurred during slide
• 92 of avalanche victims will survive if
  recovered within 15 minutes

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15 min
100
First 15 min 92 survive
92
80
60
Probability of Survival ()
40
20
0
120
80
160
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Time Buried Under Debris (minutes)
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• Avoid avalanche terrain
• Learn about avalanches, minimize your risks
• Roll the dice (or pull the lever!)

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SOUND DOES NOT TRIGGER AVALANCHES
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A SLOPE IS STEEP ENOUGH
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SNOW CONDITIONS ARE UNSTABLE
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THERE IS A TRIGGER
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CROWN FACE BED SURFACE FLANKS DEBRIS
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• Cohesive mass of snow
• Weak layer
• Steep slope
• Trigger

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Slab
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• Conditions to create..
• Thin Snowpack
• Cold Temperatures
• Looks and Feels like..
• Loose Sugar

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• Conditions to create..
• Cold, clear, calm nights
• Looks and feels like..
• Large feathery crystals

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60 deg
45 deg
30 deg
15 deg
0 deg
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Weather
Snowpack
YOU
Terrain
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Terrain
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• Factors to consider
• Slope angle
• Slope size and consequences
• Slope shape
• Vegetation/trees
• Runout
• Aspect w/respect to wind
• Elevation

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Steepness
Lack of vegetation
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convexity
concavity
stress concentration point
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A small slide can have enormous consequences if
it funnels you into a constricted area.
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Trigger Point
Burial Point
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500 FOOT FRACTURE
TRIGGER POINT
800 FOOT RUNNING DISTANCE
BURIAL
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DEPTH IN INCHES
43 32 6 4 0
NEW SNOW
WIND SLAB
NEAR-SURFACE FACETS
CRUST
RELATIVE HARDNESS
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Weather
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• The three most important factors are
• Snow and Rain
• Wind
• Temperature

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More snow equals more fun but it also equals
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• Avalanche danger will tend to INCREASE if
• It is snowing 1 per hour or more for several
  hours
• 8-10 or more of snow has accumulated
• It is raining, especially on new snow

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• Shady aspects
• Cooler
• Softer snow
• More persistent instabilities?

• Sunny aspects
• Warmer
• Crusts
• Shallower
• Stabilize faster?

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• Rapid temperature increases

• Storms beginning cool and warming

• Prolonged temperatures above 32 degrees

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This incident is an example of how WEATHER was a
contributing factor in this avalanche. During the
week prior to the avalanche several small storms
deposited 8-12 inches of snow, all of them
accompanied by wind.
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PATH
75 Feet
Victim
Snowmobile
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Snowpack

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An avalanche occurs when the load, or stress,
applied to the snow exceeds its strength.
Additional load can be in the form of us
riding on the snow, new snow from a recent storm,
or windblown snow deposited onto lee slopes. If
the balance is close to stress being equal to
strength, then adding just a little more load
could produce an avalanche.
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Unstable Snowpack
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AVALANCHE SITE
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Recovery location
Last seen point
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You
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• Are you willing to make an objective assessment
  of the avalanche danger?

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WWW.AVALANCHE.ORG
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These include collapsing, cracking or
whumphing of the snow, and
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Look for instability NOT stability Take your
pulse Know before you go. Communicate
Listen Accept that we are only
human Understand yourself and group
dynamics Use a system checklists, procedures
and rituals
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Everyone is facing uphill, engines off, with
nowhere to run.
Yesterdays Slide Path
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BAD!
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• 63 of snowmobile avalanche accidents occur
  while highmarking
• Bottom Line if youre going to highmark dont
  expose more than one rider at a time on the slope

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3 MACHINES 3 RIDERS 2000 lb
ADDED IN A MATTER OF MINUTES
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What is your insurance policy?
T Carry Rescue Gear
T Safe Travel Techniques
T Fast Rescue Ability
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Shovel
Beacon
Probe
Or better yetmake sure your PARTNER has rescue
gear.. AND knows how to use it!
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receiving unit
sending unit
Signal strength depends upon distance
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Signal strength depends upon orientation
maximum
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Signal strength depends upon orientation
minimum
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Objective Detect strong signal
Primary Search gt40m
Objective Get close to buried Transmitter
(approx. 3 meters)
Secondary Search 40-3m
Objective Locate strongest signal, Minimize
probe/dig area
Pinpoint Search lt3m
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Primary search
Signal picked up here, Secondary search begins
Pinpoint search
110.
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• 1/4 die of blunt trauma
• Fully buried 28 survive
• First 15 min 92 survive
• After 35 minutes 27 survive

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Probability of Survival ()
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0
120
80
160
40
20
Time Buried Under Debris (minutes)
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• Try to get off of the moving slab
• Hang onto sled unless a violent tumble
• Swim hard and fight, grab trees
• Make an airspace around your mouth
• Push one hand towards the surface
• Relax- your partners have practiced a lot, they
  were in a safe place you checked all your
  beacons at the trailhead

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• Yell! Watch that person
• Make a mental effort to stay calm
• Re-group and make a plan with a leader
• Do not go for help
• Is it safe to search - Auxiliary slides possible?
• Last Point Seen!
• All Beacons to receive, Probes
• Identify most likely areas of burial
• Visual Clues are critical time saving, mark
  them in place
• Probe scuff search
• Search- evenly spread, dont cluster, communicate
• Evacuation Plan First Aid

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Using a beacon, probe and shovel ?
11 MINUTES
Using a beacon and shovel ?
25 MINUTES
Using only a beacon ?
1 2 HOURS
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• Ride the slope one at a time. Dont ride up to
  help dig out your stuck partner.
• Recent avalanches are an obvious sign of
  instability, so dont play on adjacent slopes
  blindly.
• Test lots of small slopes on your way in and get
  off the packed trail as much as you can. Get off
  your machine and walk around occasionally.
• Riding a slope from the top down is a safer
  option than from the bottom up, because you are
  facing a better direction if anything goes wrong.

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• If the goal is to highmark then gather as much
  information as possible on initial passes by
  riding low and fast and not getting stuck. Turn
  away from the center of the slope.
• If youre at the bottom waiting your turn and
  cant avoid sitting in a big runout zone, keep
  your machines running and pointed away from the
  slope for a fast escape.
• Carry rescue gear on you and know how to use it.

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• Snow stability?
• Rescue Gear?
• Partners in a safe place?
• Good line?
• What will you do if it slides???

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Recognize that patterns exist based on elevation,
aspect and slope angle!
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Slope angle, aspect with respect to sun and wind,
consequences, slope shape, trees, runout,
elevation, patterns of avalanche activity
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• 1 Let someone know where you are going and when
  check-in and check-out stations are provided, use
  them be sure to give a return time.
• 2 Stay on the right hand side of the trail.
• Always carry basic emergency and survival
  equipment - Be prepared for the unexpected
• 4 Be familiar with your snowmobile try short
  trips and practice in open fields to become
  thoroughly familiar with its controls and
  operation before going on extended trips.

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5 Always were adequate winter clothing and
protective glasses or goggles. Watch out for
sunburn and use Sun block cream or
lotion. 6 Check ice thickness before crossing or
traveling across frozen lakes or streams Beware
of soft spots or open water. 7 Always carry a
tool kit, spare parts, and extra gas. 8 Watch the
weather, winter storms can set in very rapidly,
resulting in white ours, which make finding your
way our very difficult. 9 Keep yourself
physically fit.
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• 10 Keep your snowmobile in good operating
  condition be familiar with its mechanics so you
  can make emergency repairs.
• Dont travel alone- Two snowmobiles traveling
  together are much safer than one.
• DISTRESS SIGNALS
• Three smokes, three blasts of a whistle, three
  shouts, three flashes of light, three of anything
  that will attract attention.

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• 1 I will be a good sportsman and safe
  snowmobiler. I recognize that people judge all
  snowmobile owners by my actions. I will use my
  influence with other snowmobile owners to promote
  safe snowmobile conduct.
• 2 I will not litter trails or camping areas. I
  will not pollute streams or lakes.
• 3 I will not damage living trees, shrubs, or
  other natural features.
• 4 I will respect other peoples property and
  rights.
• I will lend a helping hand when I see someone in
  distress.

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• 6 I will make myself and my vehicle available to
  assist search and rescue parties.
• 7 I will not interfere with or harass hikers,
  skiers, snowshoers, ice fishermen or other winter
  sportsmen. I will respect their rights to enjoy
  our recreation facilities.
• I will know and obey all federal, state, and
  local rules regulating the operation of
  snowmobiles in areas where I plan to ride.
• I will not harass wildlife. I will avoid areas
  posted for the protection of wildlife.
• 10 I will not ride under the influence of alcohol.

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The field session will be held on
________________. 900 AM will begin the first
exercise at the _______________ parking lot.
945 AM Depart ____________ parking lot for the
training site. Pack a lunch or bring a snack and
water.
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Be safe. Have fun THANK YOU!!