Incident Summary
- Date
- 2020-01-04
- Location
- Cabin Lake
- Location Description
- Approx. 35km SW of Merritt
- Province
- BC
- Coordinates
- 49.97211 °, -121.22597 °
- Elevation
- 1850 m
- Activity
- Snowmobiling
- Involvement
- 1
- Injury
- 0
- Fatality
- 1
- Description
- Two people were snowmobiling on a small but steep slope above Cabin Lake. A slab avalanche 300 metres wide with an average thickness of 60cm thick was triggered. The avalanche ran up to 175 metres and caught one person who was buried and did not survive. Storms had recently deposited significant amounts of new snow in the area, accompanied by strong south-westerly winds. Preliminary investigation found a layer of surface hoar 60-70cm deep on the bed surface of the slide. The presence of surface hoar and the significant propagation of the fracture line on a relatively small treeline feature suggest this was a Persistent Slab avalanche.
Avalanches
| Date/Time | Size | Type | Trigger | Elevation | Aspect | Slab width | Slab Thickness |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.5 | S | Ma | 1915 m | NE | 300 m | 60 cm |
Weather
| Present Temp | Max Temp | Min Temp | 24hr Trend | Wind Speed | Wind Direction | Sky Condition | Precipitation Type & Intensity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Weather Comment: Weather stations west and north of the scene recorded 21-26mm overnight prior to the date of the incident.
Snowpack
| Snowpack | 24hr Snow | Storm Snow | Storm Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 175 cm | - | - | - |
Snowpack Comment: Fracture line profile carried out the day after the incident found a snow depth of 175cm with a layer of surface hoar 70cm below the surface. Testing indicated moderate to hard results with a sudden planar fracture character.
Documents
No documents available.