UTAH, Jan. 27, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — The Utah Avalanche Center has issued an avalanche watch for the Logan, Wasatch and Uinta mountains Wednesday.
“Strong winds and heavy dense snowfall will likely create very dangerous avalanche conditions,” the UAC website says. “Both human triggered and natural avalanches are likely. Stay off of and out from under slopes steeper than 30 degrees.”
The forecast for the Wasatch mountains says: “The avalanche danger will be on the rise today and we may be at HIGH danger again later tonight into tomorrow. Dangerous avalanche conditions will become more widespread in the backcountry. A CONSIDERABLE DANGER exists on many freshly wind loaded slopes in the mid and upper elevations. Natural avalanches are possible; human triggered avalanches are increasingly likely. Some of these avalanches may be triggered at a distance… and some of these may step down into older weak layers, leading to a larger and more destructive avalanche.”
The forecast for the Logan mountains says: “Elevated avalanche conditions exist this morning on steep slopes at all elevations in the Bear River Range, and drifting fresh snow from intensifying south winds will cause the avalanche danger to increase. Dangerous conditions will develop, and today the danger will rise to CONSIDERABLE on steep drifted slopes at upper and mid elevations.
“People are likely to trigger slab avalanches of wind drifted snow, as well as more dangerous avalanches involving old snow, failing on a widespread buried persistent weak layer. Evaluate snow and terrain carefully and make conservative decisions.”
The forecast for the Uinta Mountains says: “In the wind zone at and above treeline, CONSIDERABLE avalanche danger is found on steep slopes and HUMAN TRIGGERED AVALANCHES ARE LIKELY, especially in terrain facing the north half of the compass. Remember, fresh slabs are forming on a snowpack that resembles a house of cards and any slide triggered will break deeper and wider than you might expect. You don’t need to be on steep slopes in order to trigger avalanches, you just need connected to them. Avoid being on, near, or underneath steep terrain.”
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