Mountain users warned of avalanche threat
Officials on Friday warned skiers and snowboarders heading out to the mountains this weekend to be careful, one day after a woman was partially buried in a small avalanche near Fernie, B.C.
The 33-year-old woman was caught in an avalanche Thursday while cat skiing at Island Lake Lodge in B.C.'s Lizard Range.
"She was knocked over and taken a ways down the mountain and bumped into a tree, breaking her leg quite badly," said Steve Kuijt, general manager of Island Lake Lodge.
The woman was taken by helicopter to the Fernie Hospital and then transported to Calgary in stable condition.
Mr. Kuijt said the avalanche was small, about 15 metres wide and 50 centimetres deep.
"This was an isolated patch of snow that was slightly wind-deposited," said Mr. Kuijt, adding the lodge is still running its normal programs.
Karl Klassen, a public avalanche forecaster for the Canadian Avalanche Centre in Revelstoke, said there were two weak layers of snow in the South Rockies Region that were of concern.
"The problem is people can't see or feel them anymore, so they may not know they're there," said Mr. Klassen.
He said the same layers have proved to be problematic in other areas, and he thinks they are on the verge of causing significant problems.
"People have to be very careful about what terrain they are skiing on," he said.
An avalanche bulletin for Banff, Yoho and Kootenay National Parks warns of a surface hoar layer of significant concern.
The layer is now buried and any avalanche on the layer would likely be a big avalanche.
At least 14 people have been killed in avalanches in Western Canada this ski season.
Calgary Herald
Published: Saturday, March 22, 2008
