GOPH 375 Lecture : Chapter 9 Avalanches.docx
Document Summary
Chapter 9: avalanches: point release usually small, slab avalanche big, huge chunk comes down. T_ creek 1989; 1 person killed, town was pre-warned. Avalanche consultant tell towns of potential hazards. St john"s signal hill national park 1959 5 people killed, rock fall. Kicking horse pass - golden bc, avalanche shut down trans canada for 2 weeks. Mitigation nets to stop avalanches: gazex exploders that release propane and oxygen to get a large explosion out and release the snow. We lose an average of one person per year from avalanches. Vast majority of fatalities are recreational voluntary risk. Forecasting is very experienced based: snow packed test determining how hard the snow is strength (how much it"s packed, ritch block test numbers 1-5 scale, each square is one day on 6. 2 graph. Transceivers: underclothing can pick up a reading from 60-70m a part. Useful for 2 snowboarders, if ones caught the other can receive a signal that tells them where they are.
