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Avalanche danger forecast for
Thursday 4/25/2019


 

AVALANCHE DANGER  

Brighten in the morning and new snow from the afternoon above 1700 m.

Thursday 4/25/2019
  

> 2000 m

  

The avalanche danger level is 3-considerable in the valleys of Gressoney, Ayas, Champorcher, in the Gran Paradiso valleys, in the heads of Valtournenche and Valpelline; 2-moderate increase to 3-considerable on the rest of the regional territory for the new snowfall fromthe afternoon.

Main avalanche problems: wet snow and wind-drifted snow


Natural avalanches
- In the Lys, Ayas, Champorcher Valleys and in the heads of the Gran Paradiso valleys: medium and large loose-snow and slab avalanches are possible at all exposures and even single avalanches that could reach the valley bottom. The amounts of fresh snow and the strong S winds will overload the north-facing avalanche basins, which, at high altitudes, still have a lot of snow on persistent weak layers. Therefore, any avalanches can erode the underlying old snow, taking on important dimensions.

- Sluffs and small avalanches of fresh snow from rocky bars or very steep slopes up to 2500 m in the rest of the territory.


Triggered avalanches
In the areas most affected by snowfall, the triggering of soft wind slabs is possible when a skier/hiker passes over steep slopes, near the ridges and hills above the treeline. The possibility of triggering deeper slabs on extreme N slopes at high altitudes is rarer.




AVALANCHE DANGER TREND  Friday 26:    Saturday 27:  

In general there is a gradual decrease in the danger related to the rapid settlement of the spring snow. However, the expected sunshine and the ever-strong wind will leave the danger steady both Friday and Saturday.


GENERAL CONDITION
updated to 4/24/2019
 

Fresh snow from the beginning of the snowfalls (data at 13:00)
40-60 cm in the Valleys of Gressoney, Ayas, Champorcher; 40 cm in the Gran Paradiso Valleys. 10-30 cm on the border with France and Switzerland, about 10 cm in the central valley. The fresh snow has rapidly settled already during the snowfall.

Snow cover
Few snow or no snow up to 2200 m, good going up and in the East part of the Region.

Snowpack
The refreezing is absent even up to 2500 m and scarce above this altitude. The strong winds from the south-east rework the new snow above 3000 m, mainly accumulating on the northern slopes. In the northern slopes there is a potentially dangerous structure: a cohesive surface layer over a weak layer formed by faceted crystals or goblets, buried about 30 cm from the surface, which could be triggered by the weight of the new snow and the snow accumulated by the wind.

Avalanche activity reported in the last 24H: loose and small avalanches of wet and wet snow of small and medium size at all aspects above 2300 m.

Skiing conditions
in general discrete. Wet and very wet snow up to 2600 m. Dry and windy snow at high altitude.

Weather forecast

SNOW AND WEATHER CONDITIONS OF THE 7 LAST DAYS  
Monte Bianco Gran San Bernardo Gran Paradiso Monte Rosa

EUROPEAN AVALANCHE DANGER SCALE Rising avalanche danger during the day
 
5
VERY HIGH
 
4
HIGH
 
3
CONSIDERABLE
 
2
MODERATE
 
1
LOW

TYPICAL AVALANCHE PROBLEMS   CRITICAL LOCATIONS
NEW SNOW
WIND-DRIFTED SNOW
PERSISTENT WEAK
LAYERS
WET SNOW
GLIDING SNOW
IN BLACK: THE MORE CRITICAL ASPECTS AND ELEVATIONS
Snow and avalanche bulletin n° 148 issued on 4/24/2019 at 00:00 p.m.
Valid outside the ski runs controlled and managed by the ski resorts.
For an accurate interpretation of the Bulletin, go here