 Poster: A snowHead
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@Chris_n, that is so sad
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@MayDupName, reassuring that that's how it panned out...that would have been my assumption from what you could see of the valley, but I've always wondered what actually happens in those kind of situations!
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I would have been running away, screaming like a child.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Daily Fail going all in on their front page now with THE ALPS TURN DEADLY
Interesting that no one appears to move and the guy videoing is not concerned- i assume he knows its just the powder cloud after the avalanche has stopped
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@Harry Flashman, with your skis on?
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| under a new name wrote: |
| @Harry Flashman, with your skis on? |
Or skating away on skis as fast as multi Olympic Gold winner Norwegian cross-country skiing star Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo! 
Alternatively maybe those near that wooden building could have tucked in behind it for some shelter?
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@MayDupName, we were stood in that exact spot last week. It had been dumping for ages and the visibility was really poor. We heard a snow canon go off somewhere and then the whoosh and rumble of a sizeable avalanche coming down. It was impossible to work out where the sound was coming from without being able to see anything, but I thought it was also from that side of the valley.
It must have been some experience to be stood there the day that you were stood there!
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| dode wrote: |
| @MayDupName, we were stood in that exact spot last week. |
Us too six weeks ago. Makes it rather real.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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2 more in Tirol this morning, one in Kirchberg (Kitzbuel) and one is Fiss.
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Emergency services were called out again on Ash Wednesday due to avalanches in Tyrol. The control center received reports from Kirchberg (Kitzbühel district) and Fiss (Landeck district). Five helicopters were deployed.
The first alarm came in shortly before 11 a.m. "Avalanche in alpine terrain, one person buried," was the dispatch message for Kirchberg. "The search for a buried person is currently underway in the Brunn area," the shift supervisor at the control center stated upon inquiry. Two helicopters and the mountain rescue service were involved in the search operation
According to the Kitzbühel cable car company, the avalanche occurred in the Pengelstein area. The buried person was quickly located and airlifted to the hospital. "No information can be given regarding their exact condition or nationality." The operation was declared over at approximately 11:50 a.m.
Three people buried in an avalanche in Fiss.
Just a few minutes later – shortly after 11 a.m. – the next emergency call came in. Three people were reported buried in an avalanche in Fiss. "Two people were completely buried and one partially buried," said the shift supervisor. Three helicopters, several mountain rescue teams, and dog units were deployed in Fiss. According to the Fiss cable car company, the avalanche occurred in the area of the Adlerroute, a closed ski route.
High avalanche danger persists in Tyrol
February 18, 2026
Level four of five on Wednesday
. As reported, the fourth warning level on the five-level scale was in effect on Wednesday. At this level, pronounced weak layers in the snow can be easily triggered
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| Harry Flashman wrote: |
| I would have been running away, screaming like a child. |
I would have been in the toilets stealing the bog rolls & selling them!
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You know it makes sense.
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| Quote: |
Us too six weeks ago. Makes it rather real
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@ster, indeed!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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There was an avalanche in madesimo and they still, about 24 hours later, haven't found one of the missing guys. Heard something about livigno yesterday but i think thankfully no one was caught up in it. Kinda glad to sit this week out tbh, doing some cross country skiing instead.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Something I need education on is good places to get alerts or to check avalanche warnings. Obviously first port of call is resort warnings, but what is there more widespread that's good to keep an eye on to have a better feel for risk?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@SnoodyMcFlude, Most alpine countries have a more or less 'official' national organisation issuing overall and more localised warnings. The Swiss one, for example, is the Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research. Just search national avalanche bulletin or similar for whichever country you're visiting.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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The article I quoted earlier has been updated to say one in Fiss dead. Over 30 avalanches reported in Tirol alone today with 14 helicopter deployments. Many of the avalanches have been spontaneous following more snow and high winds yesterday.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| brownie wrote: |
https://pistehors.com/UxTEbJwBhUhZWzGsqHry/meteo-france-issues-special-avalanche-warning-for-the-alps
Special warning from Meteo France |
Interesting to note this sentence in the report on what Meteo France have said "Météo-France is urging “the greatest caution” outside marked and open ski runs. The warning applies to all mountain activities, including skiing and hiking."
(Which will obviously have been translated by someone/thing given Meteo France only issue statements in French).
"The greatest caution" is an interesting phrase because it doesn't really mean anything, there isn't anything actionable at all in that statement. The only actionable statement is "to consult the latest avalanche bulletins on its official website and mobile application, and to seek advice from local mountain professionals before heading into alpine terrain"
It may be more useful if they provided some advice, e.g. avoid travelling through or below avalanche terrain except on public highways or marked pistes within ski resorts.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@SnoodyMcFlude, there's an app called White Risk, but it only covers Switzerland afaik.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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It's when it's like this that I think back to another tragedy that goes to show even the most innocuous of terrain can be lethal.
And every time I take the Vallons lift up towards Cucumelle, especially now, given the conditions I see people skiing and boarding oblivious to what happened there back in 2013 when basically the slope of a gulley caved in on a young snowboarder.
An avalanche swept away a 16-year-old snowboarder from the Paris region on Friday afternoon while he was skiing off-piste in Serre Chevalier. The avalanche occurred in the Cucumelle sector, below the Vallons chairlift. The young man was rescued and resuscitated at the scene before being transported to the hospital in Grenoble, where he died a few hours later.
And today I was "leading" my niece in mellow terrain overtly conscious of anything remotely suspicious and I talked her through the runout that was basically flat and told her to use the few existing tracks to get speed up etc as she was on a board.
However when she didn't show for around 5 mins panic paranoia set in, and I started to think that I had missed something and the worse had happened, and I was very relieved when she answered her phone, she had tripped over and lost speed and was having to walk out, she was also a bit panicky thinking she had lost me, and used her transceiver to try and locate where I might be.
I know as an ex boarder of 15 or so years that you're often tempted to take a different line to avoid a flat run out.a
We're only talking 250m max but just goes to show, plus we didn't tell her Mum, my ex sister in law that I was making her take arva gear as the Mother would have been restless all morning.
Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Wed 18-02-26 17:52; edited 2 times in total
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| SnoodyMcFlude wrote: |
| Something I need education on is good places to get alerts or to check avalanche warnings. Obviously first port of call is resort warnings, but what is there more widespread that's good to keep an eye on to have a better feel for risk? |
For Europe, https://avalanche.report/ and then click through to the area you want (a bit of geographical knowledge is useful). If it's e.g. France, the bulletin will go through to the relevant Meteo briefing. Just remember “avalanche dot report”.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| bouquetin wrote: |
| ... It may be more useful if they provided some advice, e.g. avoid travelling through or below avalanche terrain except on public highways or marked pistes within ski resorts. |
Perhaps that Special Avalanche Warning is telling us the conditions and the risks, not what we should do about them? It didn't list all those dire sounding horrible risks and then say: "but take your fill" either.
Wiegele owned a heliski company. He said something like: "There's no sense trying to outthink a PWL, just do not go where it can avalanche." [1]
That's good advice. Definitely do not stop in those places either.
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[1] "The Darkest White", Blehm, page 241.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Thanks for all the links people
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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I suppose that the more specific the warnings about avalanche risks the more vulnerable the authorities are to the suggestion that they missed out one that happened.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| James the Last wrote: |
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DU3PmvFDTm5/?igsh=MWVwYW84N2RqNTJ3dg==
This is how to deal with those pesky avalanches. All it takes is the confidence to stare them in the eye.  |
That's good skiing.
As the old saying goes.
If it starts to slide, make a faster ride.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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The wonderful malapropism in the BBC clip: “Then it doomed (sic) on us [what] was about to happen.”
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Also level 4 currently here in central Asia. We are all having a blast enjoying <30° powder with no overhead risk. It's simply not that complicated to do safely. Not sure why some so eager to risk their lives.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| James the Last wrote: |
| The wonderful malapropism in the BBC clip: “Then it doomed (sic) on us [what] was about to happen.” |
the lady in the clip used to play Private Frazer in Dad's Army
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Les Menuires is shut down today due to 5/5 avalanche danger except for the lowest lifts in the resort. If I am correct, the whole 3valleys is closed, only the lowest lifts are running in the respective area.
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| James the Last wrote: |
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DU3PmvFDTm5/?igsh=MWVwYW84N2RqNTJ3dg==
This is how to deal with those pesky avalanches. All it takes is the confidence to stare them in the eye. |
I do wonder about the role of social media / ski films normalising contact with avalanches, particularly in the eyes of us rather more mortal skiers
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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That BBC interview annoyingly over the top and tabloidesque. Beautiful avalanche, no real risk to any of the skiers in the line, interviewed like she'd had a lucky escape.
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| 8611 wrote: |
| no real risk to any of the skiers in the line |
Mmmm, not entirely convinced by that.
Bottom lift station was pulverised in Mottaret the other day. Sure it was from PIDA but still.
Also, would imagine if anyone had a heart condition in that line...
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