 Poster: A snowHead
|
The Guardian yesterday had a full page headed "60 years after 'winter of terror', Alpine resorts fear killer avalanche season" http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jan/01/avalanches-alps-scotland
Quotes:
"Heavy snowfall combined with rain and an easing of the extreme cold prompted Météo France, the national meteorological service, to raise the avalanche warning this week to level four out of five, meaning "high risk".
"We haven't had temperatures so mild and such a high level of rain for several years," said a spokesman for the police in Chamonix, who said the rescuers had been called out to six or seven avalanches since the beginning of December. "This year it has rained a lot and the rain has weighed down the blanket of snow. The effect has been to destabilise the snow and … this has led to avalanches," he added. .............."
"As tourists pile into the welcoming resorts of the French, Austrian, Swiss and Italian Alps, however, it is this region that is causing greatest concern. And, while monitoring the weather conditions is considered vital, there is a single recommendation upon which all experts agree: skiing off-piste, the favoured option of many adrenaline junkies, is to be avoided at all costs. "We are strongly advising against it," said Daniel Goetz, an avalanche forecaster for Météo France."
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
Does this mean the pistes will be clogged up with 'adrenaline junkies' to scare us recreational skiers with their crazy antics?
Where is the tongue-in-cheek smiley?
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
| Quote: |
| Heinz Walter Mathys, a lawyer and president of the Swiss commission for the prevention of snow sports accidents, said anyone found to have triggered an avalanche through irresponsible skiing could, and should, face some form of civil or criminal proceedings. But he added: "Resorts, whose mission it is to keep the ski slopes safe and inform skiers about the dangers of avalanches, can also be held responsible." |
I know there have been cases against skiers in France - looks like the Swiss are getting minded that way, too.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
achilles, I can understand their ideas with that, but how do you go about proving it?!
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
| snowball wrote: |
| Guardian newspaper says don't ski off piste |
Very appropriate for a guardian
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
does this mean all our insurance is invalid as we've ignored the guardian? 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Oops - I looked on search late-ish last night and there was nothing, then put it in this morning without another search.
I wonder how general the grade 4 avalanche level is at present. Anyone got any current gradings in their area?
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
We were at three today.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Not very I don't think. Between 2 (moderate) and 3 (considerable) in Tirol (and Chamonix I think), but obviously it changes frequently and is very local. I think the Guardian article was perhaps a little alarmist (?), although the subject matter is obviously serious. I would have thought the rain should have percolated through the snow pack now and the cold weather should be starting to stabalise things at least at lower levels? That doesn't mean that there may not be problems with weak layers or poor bonding and of course I would have though that the avalanche risk will likely increase if there were new snowfall, significant wind or another bout of warming.
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
allanm, thanks, I didn't know about that.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| nozawaonsen wrote: |
| I think the Guardian article was perhaps a little alarmist (?) |
The British press alarmist about skiing! How unusual
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
|
allanm, That is, you get them all except for Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Germany (in fact anywhere outside France).
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
alex_heney, OK, you can only get them for France from that link. ..Sorry...
But, do the other countries have similar sources of information?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
allanm, This one has links to all the European warnings, as far as I can tell
http://www.avalanches.org/
But not all of those then have English versions - some do, some don't.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
The Swiss already do an English forecast: see www.slf.ch. I will do some more work on the French translation over the next week to see if I can improve it further. Meteo France already do an English version of the bulletin, but they don't make it public!
Someone posted this useful information to PisteHors about avalanche resources
http://pistehors.com/news/forums/viewthread/222/
Regarding the Grauniad article, as the expert says, too early to say but the Lanchettes avalanche occured at risk 3 and the Orelle at risk 2 - from the official Meteo France bulletins.
To put some perspective on it. At the same time last year we had had 6 fatal avalanche incidents in France, we have had 5 this season. Last season we had avalanches hitting villages in the southern french alps, but because there were no Brits that didn't count for the Guardian.
For a more rational analysis of what happened last season in France see here:
http://skirando.com/images/avalanche/avalanche-analysis-2009.pdf
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
