Avalanche danger rising on B.C.’s South Coast as warm, wet weather arrives

Warm, wet, stormy weather forecast for British Columbia’s South Coast this weekend won’t just soak locals, it’s also raising the prospect of avalanche danger in the backcountry.

Environment Canada has issued rainfall warnings for Howe Sound and much of Metro Vancouver, with a “series of moderate rainfall systems” expected to cross the region between Friday and Sunday.

“Each day will receive approximately 20 to 50 mm of rainfall accumulations,” Environment Canada warned.

“The highest amounts are expected on Saturday. The cumulative rainfall accumulations over three days may reach near 100 mm by the end of this weekend.”

Those rainy systems are also expected to bring rising temperatures, along with dangerous avalanche conditions in the backcountry, warned Avalanche Canada forecaster Karina Bakker.

“You will see a lot of areas where the avalanche danger is going up to ‘high.’  This means very dangerous avalanche conditions exist,” she told Global News.

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“Natural avalanches are likely to occur and human-triggered avalanches are very likely to occur.”

Bakker said the cold, dry weather in January helped create a weak layer of snow in the mountains of Southwest B.C.

“This added precipitation landing on top of it as well as this warm weather might reactivate those weak layers, so what may seem to start as a small storm avalanche could easily transition into a very large avalanche when it steps down to those weak layers,” she said.

Bakker is urging people to stay out of the backcountry unless they have read and understood the forecast, they have the proper training, and they are equipped with the proper safety gear including a beacon, probe and shovel.