Experts are urging anyone heading into the Sea to Sky backcountry to practice extreme caution, after a problematic snowpack and wind-loaded slopes resulted in a string of avalanches that killed two people and injured several others.
A 45-year-old Sea to Sky local is dead after getting swept up in a slide while snowboarding in Brandywine Bowl on Saturday afternoon, Feb. 13, less than 24 hours after a skier was killed and another badly injured when Poop Chutes, on Phalanx Mountain near Blackcomb Glacier, released a size 3 slide.
Those events came following an initial Friday afternoon avalanche off Spearhead Glacier that severely injured another skier.
That鈥檚 in addition to an event that took place in the Supercouloir area near Mamquam Mountain in Squamish on Thursday, Feb. 11. who were in the area at the time, one of whom broke his leg after reportedly being caught in an avalanche.
The two skiers, both from Squamish, are lucky to be alive, and lucky that CFB Comox's 442 Rescue Squadron was available to offer its services at the time: The aircrafts normally used by Squamish Search and Recue pilots were deemed unsafe to fly in the high winds that were blowing Thursday, while the military鈥檚 larger and sturdier Cormorant helicopter was up to the task.
"[There were] four serious search and rescue calls in the last [three] days, [two] of them fatal, and a multitude of serious injuries," said Sea to Sky RCMP Sgt. Sascha Banks in a release issued after Saturday鈥檚 fatal avalanche in Whistler.
"The calls speak for themselves... the backcountry in the Sea to Sky is not stable at the moment, it鈥檚 time to wait and postpone your touring trip here for another time. This is hard on all of us: Search teams, bystanders, police, and most importantly the loved ones of those who have died and been injured. Their stories have valuable lessons鈥� which we all need to learn from."
Friday afternoon avalanches kill one, injure two near Blackcomb Glacier
A group of three skiers were touring on Phalanx Mountain, an out-of-bounds area above Blackcomb Glacier on Friday afternoon when b that measured approximately 50 centimetres thick and 60 to 80 metres wide, according to Avalanche Canada鈥檚 preliminary accident report.
The size 3 slide reportedly travelled a distance of 650 metres, fully burying both subjects in the process. 鈥淥ne person was recovered near the toe of the slide with injuries. The second was found higher in the path but did not survive,鈥� the report read.
The incident occurred at 鈥渁lmost the same time鈥� as a skier was swept by a stiff slab just a few kilometres away, in a similarly out-of-bounds zone off the Spearhead Glacier. The individual was carried over several rocks and left with severe injuries requiring evacuation by air ambulance.
As of Sunday evening, Sea to Sky RCMP had confirmed the single fatality but had not released any additional details regarding the identity of the individuals who were caught up in either of the avalanches near Blackcomb Glacier Friday afternoon.
Whistler Search and Rescue (SAR) crews were on standby but were ultimately not needed after Whistler Blackcomb Ski Patrol successfully handled both incidents, Whistler SAR manager Brad Sills told Pique in a phone call Sunday, Feb 14.
The woman who survived the Phalanx avalanche was left with several 鈥減retty complicated injuries,鈥� explained Whistler-based avalanche expert , but likely owes her life to a group and its instructor who were in the area as part of an Avalanche Skills Training (AST) level 2 course. They witnessed the slide and quickly jumped into action to dig her out.
鈥淚f they wouldn鈥檛 have been there, there might have been a different outcome,鈥� Flann told Pique.
(Pique was not able to determine if those caught up in the two Blackcomb backcountry slides were wearing transceivers.)
The Sea to Sky鈥檚 avalanche forecast on Friday was rated at 鈥渃onsiderable鈥� for alpine terrain.
Blackcomb Mountain鈥檚 Controlled Recreational Area encompasses 2,094 hectares on the north and east side of Fitzsimmons Creek, while Blackcomb Mountain鈥檚 ski terrain includes an additional 219 hectares within Blackcomb Glacier Provincial Park for which it has a Special Use Permit for operation鈥攚hich includes Phalanx and portions of the Spearhead region鈥攖hat has been in effect for decades. This agreement contains commitments from Whistler Blackcomb to carry out avalanche control in the area.
Whistler Blackcomb is not commenting on the Feb. 12 avalanches beyond pointing to this agreement.
Flann, however, confirmed ski patrol would have conducted avalanche control in the Phalanx area via helicopter that morning, as part of the long-standing agreement to provide avalanche mitigation for the out-of-bounds zones adjacent to the ski resort.
Whistler Blackcomb crews generally 鈥渙nly do mitigation when they're worried about an avalanche actually going into their designated run,鈥� Flann explained.
Though their bombing tested the stability of the slopes, Whistler Blackcomb 鈥渞eported basically zero results for that morning鈥� of Feb. 12, he said. But conditions can vary greatly throughout a single day, explained Flann, which likely contributed to the avalanche that occurred later that afternoon. 鈥淵ou can't throw a bomb in every little tiny slope, either,鈥� he added. 鈥淵ou're only going for the targets that you think might release, and you can't throw a bomb in every little pocket because you'd be out there all day.鈥�
Additionally, the skiers who were caught 鈥渨ere way up high, on a slope in an area that, normally, I don't think gets skied very much,鈥� Flann said. 鈥淭hey were in very steep terrain, and unfortunately that's where [wind] slabs like to grow.鈥�
The size 3 slide that resulted from that slab means the fatal avalanche was large enough to destroy a small building or bury a car. The avalanche grading system operates on a scale that sees each numbered level increase in scope by approximately ten times that of its predecessor. So, for example, a size 3 avalanche is typically around 100 times bigger than a size 1, explained Avalanche Canada forecaster Ilya Storm.
鈥淎ll you need is 100 metres in length, typically a size 2鈥攚hich isn't necessarily that big鈥攁nd you're in the game where you're playing for keeps,鈥� Storm said. 鈥淚f you go 10 times larger, an avalanche that is going 1000 metres or a kilometre down鈥� to survive as a skier, or boarder or snowmobiler, it takes an element of luck.鈥�
Experienced local snowboarder killed in Brandywine Bowl
Another tragic blow occurred less than a day later, when first responders received a call about , near the Callaghan Valley about 15 kilometres south of Whistler Village. He was wearing a transceiver when he was swept up in a small wind slab.
RCMP confirmed Saturday afternoon, Feb. 13 that the man had died.
Friends took to social media to identify the victim as Squamish resident , a long-time Sea to Sky local who had extensive and exceptional experience in the backcountry.
Whistler 厂础搁鈥檚 Sills told Pique that volunteers worked with numerous other agencies to respond to the call, including Whistler Blackcomb Ski Patrol. 鈥淭ypically we ask for [an avalanche] dog, a doctor, and two level 2 [Canadian Avalanche Association] technicians, and that allows us to go to the site and collect the pertinent information, upon which we can build an avalanche operations plan,鈥� he said.
鈥淭here is a process before we actually insert members into a site. We have to do a full report, and we do that for our own safety.鈥�
That initial crew of first responders was swiftly followed by a second helicopter carrying Whistler SAR volunteers, Sills said, adding that it took 42 minutes from the time he received the call for the first helicopter to lift off of Whistler Mountain.
According to police, the missing snowboarder was located about 45 minutes after the call came in.
Though the avalanche was on the smaller side, with Avalanche Canada grading it a size 1, Sills said the snowboarder had been caught in trees about halfway down a steep, technical slope with 鈥渁 lot of remaining hazards overhead,鈥� forcing crews to carry out a long-line rescue.
Sills could not confirm the condition of the search subject at the time of his rescue.
Henkel's death represents the loss of yet another knowledgeable, well-prepared powder-hunter to the mountains this winter, something Sills said is becoming a disturbing pattern.
鈥淲hat鈥檚 emerging, and what's quite different this year is that at least four of the here in the Sea to Sky country have been with well-above-average鈥擨 would say very experienced鈥攕now travellers,鈥� he told Pique.
鈥淭here's something pushing people with a lot of experience and a lot of knowledge into decision-making regimes that are not faring out very well. And, most likely, the culprit here is that we have a very complicated snowpack this year, quite unlike the snowpacks that we typically get on the coast.鈥�
He added, 鈥淏ehaviours that have been acceptable in past years are not acceptable this year.鈥�
So what is the combination of factors leading to this unusually high number of tragic incidents recently?
Wind slabs proving problematic after a week of cold weather and north-easterly winds
The windy, cold weather Whistler experienced this week led to light, faceted snow that鈥檚 easily blown around by the strong gusts, explained both Flann and Storm. 鈥淲hen you get strong winds in variable directions and transportable snow, it produces wind slabs,鈥� Flann said.
While Whistler鈥檚 winds typically blow from the south or southeast, this week鈥檚 Arctic outflow meant they were instead coming from the opposite directions, carrying that loose snow with them and reverse loading slopes in 鈥渦nusual places, surprising places鈥� where flakes don鈥檛 usually pile up, Storm added.
"South- and west-facing slopes are the ones that are in play right now,鈥� he said.
Typically the snowpack on those aspects is 鈥渟coured and thin,鈥� Storm told Pique, meaning it鈥檚 鈥渨eaker, has facets, sugary granules of snow, might have thin sun crusts. So we have weakness, which is almost a persistent weakness, being covered up by wind slabs.鈥�
To that end, Friday鈥檚 slide off Phalanx occurred on a west-facing aspect, while Saturday鈥檚 avalanche in Brandywine occurred on a southwest-facing slope.
In this case, the low temperatures and gusty conditions also developed wind slabs that were quite firm.
When it comes to these harder-packed slabs, 鈥淚t doesn't take much to initiate them and then they move quickly, easily,鈥� Flann explained. 鈥淪o you don't really have time to get off them, and they move pretty fast so you gain speed pretty quick.鈥�
The skier- and rider-triggered slides came following widespread natural releases of size 1 and size 2 avalanches that occurred in the Whistler area on and since Thursday, Feb. 11, said Flann.
Though Storm kept returning to the words 鈥渦nusual and surprising鈥� when describing current avalanche conditions in the region, Flann didn鈥檛 necessarily agree with that phrasing.
鈥淯sually every year we have a cycle where we get a fairly major Arctic outbreak, we get a fairly major deep freeze and usually we get stiff slabs when that happens,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 call it unusual. It鈥檚 not a common thing that happens every week, but I would say that it definitely happens once or twice a year.鈥�
Heading into the backcountry? Here鈥檚 what you need to keep in mind.
With conditions remaining on the sketchy side for the foreseeable future, Sills advised local backcountry enthusiasts to 鈥渄ial it way back鈥� as winter continues.
鈥淕et some nice cruise-y ski [days] in,鈥� he said. 鈥淎ll the ski hills are empty; go rip it up on the groomers. It's really difficult, even for the snow scientists, to understand with any great amount of confidence what's happening. And it鈥檚 so varied in the snowpack this year, there's so many pockets of instability and there's so many people [in the backcountry] that every piece of the landscape is getting stepped on.鈥�
Even those with an above-average level of experience in the mountains should play it safe and practice caution right now, agreed Storm.
鈥淚f I was going out there right now with my skills [as a professional avalanche forecaster], it's time for recognizing that the usual things that you do may not serve you well,鈥� he said. 鈥淵ou have to be extra attentive everywhere that you travel, you have to be doing slope-by-slope assessments with a recognition that you're on the lookout for unusual conditions where [slides] might be bigger than expected, and propagating wider than expected鈥� Personally, I'd be using my surface hoar toolbox from the Interior, if I was skiing out on the coast range right now.鈥�
Before heading into the mountains, 鈥淕et as much information as you can,鈥� advised Flann. 鈥淲hen you're out there, look for signs of slab development鈥� and just be conservative right now.鈥�
With about 15 centimetres of new snow expected to accumulate over the corridor by the end of the day on Monday, Feb. 15, 鈥檚 bulletin for the region as of Sunday evening is warning backcountry users that the precipitation will likely feed into existing wind slab problems.
Forecasters currently rate the Sea to Sky鈥檚 avalanche risk as 鈥渃onsiderable鈥� for the alpine and 鈥渕oderate鈥� for terrain at and below treeline.
While Storm acknowledged that Avalanche Canada鈥檚 public forecasts are 鈥渁 good starting point, they don鈥檛 do everything for you.鈥� He added, 鈥淓specially right now with these surprising and unusual conditions, people do need some skills, some smarts and to take on some of the responsibility [of managing themselves and their group].
鈥淥ur forecasts鈥� help orient you. But it needs to go beyond just looking at the danger rating these days.鈥�
Following the abundance of avalanche activity within the corridor, AdventureSmart BC is that will discuss snow safety in the backcountry. The virtual event is set to take place on Wednesday, Feb. 17 from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
- With a file from Dan Falloon
