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Avalanche danger rises after spring storm

Utah Avalanche Center

After Monday night’s storm saw upwards of six inches of snow fall on local mountains, the Utah Avalanche Center says the risk of triggering an avalanche is rising once again.

Park City Mountain Resort and Deer Valley Resort both reported just over six inches of new snow as of Tuesday morning, but upper ridgelines saw snowfall totals rise to 12 inches.

Utah Avalanche Center Forecaster Nikki Champion said the new snow combined with below-freezing temperatures will cause avalanche danger to rise to considerable levels in local mountain ranges as this storm system makes its way through the state.

Champion said the frozen lower levels of snow make for an easy, fast-running surface for the new snow to slide on. She said backcountry users also need to be aware of wind drifts that could lead to avalanches as well.

“We’ve had elevated winds accompanying this front, so we’ll likely find slabs and wind-drifted snow at all upper and some mid elevation slopes," she said. "The winds have been mostly from the north-northwest, but look for drifting on all aspects.” 

Champion said how much the avalanche danger will increase and what types of avalanches will be seen depend on how fast the snow is falling and how quickly it bonds together.

Depending on conditions, she expects the storm could produce anything from small sluff avalanches to small slab avalanches. Champion said it's important to be careful when traveling on any new snow in the backcountry this week.

“Avalanches will be easier to trigger, so just pay attention to changing weather and increased snowfall rates," said Champion. "Watch for any signs of instability when you’re traveling in the new snow. That includes cracking and sluffing. Just remember that even a small slide can have serious consequences in big, steep terrain or over cliffs today.”

Champion said the good news is that only the top layer of snow is likely to slide right now, so it will be relatively simple to assess how stable the snow is in your area.

A full avalanche report can be found here.

Sean Higgins covers all things Park City and is the Saturday Weekend Edition host at KPCW. Sean spent the first five years of his journalism career covering World Cup skiing for Ski Racing Media here in Utah and served as Senior Editor until January 2020. As Senior Editor, he managed the day-to-day news section of skiracing.com, as well as produced and hosted Ski Racing’s weekly podcast. During his tenure with Ski Racing Media, he was also a field reporter for NBC Sports, covering events in Europe.