AVALANCHE

AVALANCHES
AVALANCHE
 An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a slope,
from either natural triggers or human activity.
 Typically occurring in mountainous terrain, an
avalanche can mix air and water with the descending
snow.
 Powerful avalanches have the capability to entrain ice,
rocks, trees, and other material on the slope; however
avalanches are always initiated in snow, are primarily
composed of flowing snow, and are distinct
from mudslides, rock slides, rock avalanches,
and serac collapses from an icefall
FORMATION AND OCCURENCES

 Avalanches only occur when the stress on the snow

exceeds the shear, ductile, and tensile strength
either within the snow pack or at the contact of the
base of the snow pack with the ground or rock
surface.
 A number of the forces acting on a snow pack can be
readily determined, for example the weight of the
snow is straightforward to calculate, however it is
very difficult to know the shear, ductile, and tensile
strength within the snow pack or with the ground. 
COMMON ELEMENTS OF AVALANCHE

All avalanches share common elements:

 a trigger which causes the avalanche, a start
zone from which the avalanche originates,
 a slide path along which the avalanche flows,
 a run out where the avalanche comes to rest,
and
 a debris deposit which is the accumulated
mass of the avalanched snow once it has
come to rest. 
CLASSIFICATION

The nature of the failure of the snow pack is

used to morphologically classify the
avalanche. 
 Slab Avalanche
 Loose snow Avalanche
 Isothermal Avalanche
 Power snow Avalanche
SLAB AVALANCHE

 Slab avalanches are generated when an

additional load causes a brittle failure of a
slab that is bridging a weak snow layer; this
failure is propagated through fracture
formation in the bridging slab. 
 Slab avalanches account for around 90% of
avalanche-related fatalities, and occur when
there is a strong, cohesive layer of snow
known as a slab. 
LOOSE AVALANCHE

 Loose snow avalanches occur in freshly fallen

snow that has a lower density and are most
common on steeper terrain.
 In fresh, loose snow the release is usually at a
point and the avalanche then gradually
widens down the slope as more snow is
entrained, usually forming a teardrop
appearance.
  This is in contrast to a slab avalanche.
ISOTHERMAL AVALANCHE

 Wet snow avalanche or isothermal avalanche,

which occurs when the snow pack becomes
saturated by water.
 When the percentage of water is very high
they are known as slush flows and they can
move on very shallow slopes.
POWDER SNOW AVALANCHE

 Powder snow avalanches can exceed speeds of

300 km/h, and masses of 10,000,000 tonnes;
their flows can travel long distances along flat
valley bottoms and even up hill for short
distances.
 A powder snow avalanche is a powder
cloud that forms when an avalanche accelerates
over an abrupt change in slope, such as a cliff
band, causing the snow to mix with air.
TRIGGERS
 Avalanches are always caused by an external stress on
the snow pack; they are not random or spontaneous
events.
 Natural triggers of avalanches include additional
precipitation, radiative and convective heating, rock fall,
ice fall, and other sudden impacts; however, even a
snow pack held at a constant temperature, pressure,
and humidity will evolve over time and develop stresses,
often from the downslope creep of the snow pack. 
 Human triggers of avalanches include skiers,
snowmobiles, and controlled explosive work.
SKIERS AND SNOW MOBILES
AVALANCHE AVOIDANCE

 Good avalanche safety is a continuous

process, including route selection and
examination of the snowpack, weather
conditions, and human factors. 
PREVENTION

 There are several ways to prevent avalanches

and lessen their power and destruction.
  Explosives are used extensively to prevent
avalanches, especially at ski resorts where
other methods are often impractical.
Explosive charges are used to trigger small
avalanches before enough snow can build up
to cause a large avalanche.
PREVENTION Contd..

 Snow fences and light walls can be used to

direct the placement of snow.
  When there is a sufficient density of trees,
they can greatly reduce the strength of
avalanches. They hold snow in place and
when there is an avalanche, the impact of the
snow against the trees slows it down.
PREVENTION Contd..

 Artificial barriers can be very effective in reducing

avalanche damage.
 One kind of barrier (snow net) uses a net strung
between poles that are anchored by guy wires in
addition to their foundations.
 Another type of barrier is a rigid fence like
structure (snow fence) and may be constructed
of steel, wood or pre-stressed concrete.
  Finally, there are barriers that stop or deflect
avalanches with their weight and strength. 
SNOW FENCE
SEARCH AND RESCUE EQUIPMENT

 Chances of a buried victim being found alive

and rescued are increased when everyone in
a group is carrying and using standard
avalanche equipment, and have trained in
how to use it.
 A beacon, shovel and probe is considered the
minimum equipment to carry for surviving an
avalanche and for rescuing others who have
become buried.
HUMAN SURVIVAL AND RESCUE
Contd..
 A Blackhawk helicopter as
the crew prepares to
evacuate tourists stranded
by an avalanche in Galtür,
Austria, on February 25,
1999.
 A beacon, shovel and probe
is considered the minimum
equipment to carry for
surviving an avalanche and
for rescuing others who
have become buried.
AVALANCHE CORDS

 Using an avalanche cord is the oldest form of

equipment.
 An approximately 10 meter long red cord (similar
to parachute cord) is attached to the person in
question's belt.
 While skiing, snowboarding, or walking the cord is
dragged along behind the person. If the person
gets buried in an avalanche, the light cord stays
on top of the snow. So that they can be easily
rescued.
Cords , beacons,shovels
BEACONS

 Beacons — known as "beepers", peeps.

 They emit a "beep" via 457 kHz radio signal in
normal use, but may be switched to receive mode
to locate a buried victim up to 80 meters away.
 Analog receivers provide audible beeps that
rescuers interpret to estimate distance to a victim.
 Recent digital models also attempt to give visual
indications of direction and distance to victims
and require less practice to be useful.
PROBES
 Portable (collapsible) probes can
be extended to probe into the
snow to locate the exact location
of a victim at several yards / metres
in depth.
 When multiple victims are buried,
probes should be used to decide
the order of rescue, with the
shallowest being dug out first since
they have the greatest chance of
survival.
 Probing can be a very time-
consuming process if a thorough
search is undertaken for a victim
without a beacon.
SHOVELS

 Shovels are essential for digging through the

snow to the victim, as the snow is often too
dense to dig with hands or skis.
 A large strong scoop and sturdy handle are
important.
 Shovels are also useful for digging snow pits
as part of evaluating the snow pack for
hidden hazards, such as weak layers
supporting large loads.
AVALUNG

 A device called an Avalung has been introduced

for use in avalanche terrain.
 The device consists of a mouth piece, a flap valve,
an exhaust pipe, and an air collector, several
models of Avalung either mount on one's chest or
integrate in a proprietary backpack.
 The Avalung ameliorates this situation by drawing
breath over a large surface area in front and
pushing the warm exhaled carbon dioxide behind.
MITIGATION
What to do during an Avalanche?

 During the winter, don't venture in the

mountain without an adult.
 If you walk in a trail after a snow fall, don't
walk in the middle of it, but rather on the
side.
 Avalanches always fall down in the middle of
the path ; thus, if you are on the side, the
risks of being hit by the avalanche are lower
WHAT SHOULD BE DONE AFTER
AVALANCHE
 Once you are caught in the avalanche try to
swim to the side with the flow of the snow.
 Try to stabilize yourself. If at all possible grab
a tree or bush. Even a large rock will do,
although they are sometimes harder to hang
onto
 If you become covered with snow you should
move your head vigorously side to side. This
will allow an air space for you to breathe
CONT…..

 If you should see the avalanche coming you

should first SHOUT out to other party
members
PLACES AFFECTED BY AVALANCHE

 Les Orres, France - January 23, 1998