Metro Vancouver is still recovering from its first major snowfall of the season, but for people venturing out into the backcountry, there is a real concern about avalanches.
Mike Danks with North Shore Rescue says they recommend anyone considering hitting higher elevations to check avalanche conditions ahead of time.
The risk for the South Coast as of Tuesday morning was “considerable” and Avalanche Canada says, although no avalanches have been reported in the region recently, heavy snowfall on Monday brought in 30 to 45 centimetres of new snow and has created large and touchy storm slabs in the mountains.
Danks says that means carrying a considerable list of items, including a transceiver, a probe and a shovel, in addition to all the other safety equipment that one would normally bring.
“It’s very cold out today, so if you are going out into the backcountry, you need to make sure you have adequate layers,” said Danks. “And when we say layers, we mean insulated layers.”
Global BC meteorologist Mark Madryga says temperatures in Vancouver and the Fraser Valley will drop into Tuesday and Wednesday. This means colder Arctic air will sweep across the South Coast with temperatures being five to ten degrees below normal and overnight lows reaching -5 C.
But more precipitation will fall Thursday morning and coupled with the cold temperatures, Madryga says more snow is expected. It is too early to predict how much snow will fall at this time, however.
READ MORE: More snow possible for Vancouver and Lower Mainland Thursday following cold spell
-With files from Amy Judd
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