Avalanche danger ramps up to high as heavy, wet snow falls
<p>A semi-tractor trailer goes down U.S. Highway 2 as heavy snow falls in Columbia Falls Thursday.</p>
Rain and wet, heavy snow has ramped the avalanche danger to “high” in terrain above 5,000 feet and “considerable” in terrain below that.
A high rating means that natural and human-triggered avalanches are likely.
In the past 24 hours, there has been 2.5 inches of snow water equivalent in the Swan Range, which has seen the brunt of the storm, said the Flathead Avalanche Center.
The storm largely brought rain to valley floor until early this morning, when it changed to slushy snow, but the high country saw primarily snow.
Noisy Basin has seen two feet of snow in the last 24 hours. In some areas, the snow is sitting on a crust of ice from freezing rain. In others, it’s sitting on a layer of hoar frost.
Both conditions are ripe for slides, the Center notes.
Travel in avalanche-prone terrain is not recommended. The National Weather Service is calling for snow tomorrow and through the weekend, with heavier snow amounts Saturday into Sunday. Sunday could see rain or freezing rain the valleys.
While the snow brings dangerous travel conditions, the moisture is welcome. The Flathead Valley snowpack was sitting at about 75 percent of average.