Many backcountry avalanches are expected Thursday and Friday as a storm hits the Chugach and Kenai mountains. Officials say avalanche danger could remain elevated through the weekend.
The heavy snow is also expected to pair with strong winds. Gusts of 40-60 mph were recorded by Thursday morning on several ridgetops, the center reported. Winds were expected to increase overnight into Friday morning.
The storm is expected to clear by Saturday morning, Wagner said, but backcountry conditions will remain dangerous. “This is going to be a big shock to the mountains, and even if the storm clears out on Saturday morning and it ends up being a nice Saturday, it’s still going to be dangerous for humans,” she said.
This storm system has potential to cause deep, large avalanches because it is falling onto already weak snowpack in some areas, including in Girdwood, Wagner said.“Our recommendation is to avoid avalanche terrain,” Wagner said. “Avoid being under the big slide paths and things like that. And for folks that aren’t quite sure if they’re in avalanche terrain or not, they should just avoid the backcountry.
Avalanche danger was high earlier this week in Hatcher Pass, where on Tuesday morning nearly 2 feet of snow was reported to have fallen within a day.