KALMONT MOUNTAIN SAFETY RESOURCES

Heavy snowfall is elevating avalanche risk in parts of B.C., especially in alpine zones near Fernie B.C., said an Avalanche Canada expert. More than 50 centimetres of snow fell yesterday, when only 10-15 centimetres was forecast, said ​Ilya Storm, forecast program supervisor for Avalanche Canada in Revelstoke B.C. A special warning has been issued Feb. 19-22 for recreational backcountry users in the North and South Columbia, the Purcells, Kootenay Boundary areas, and Glacier National Park.

Feb 19, 2016, Revelstoke, BC: Avalanche Canada is issuing a Special Public Avalanche Warning for recreational backcountry users from Friday February 19 to Monday February 22. The warning applies to the North Columbia, South Columbia, the Purcells and the Kootenay Boundary. Glacier National Park is also issuing a public warning for backcountry users in that region. For a map of the affected area, click here.

MCBRIDE, B.C. — Survivors of a deadly avalanche in northeastern British Columbia looked shaken as they arrived at McBride's airport Friday, shortly after pulling bodies of fellow snowmobilers from the slide, says a search and rescue official. Dale Mason of Robson Valley Search and Rescue said six men were flown by helicopter from the mountain to the airport, where they were met by police and paramedics. Some were injured and had little to say, he said. "They all had a pretty bad day," he said. "It's a pretty traumatic event." Five bodies were recovered from the disaster in the Renshaw area near McBride, about 210 kilometres southeast of Prince George.

Crews from North Shore Rescue have recovered the body of a snowboarder who went missing Friday afternoon while riding out of bounds on Cypress Mountain. NSR located the man’s body near Montizambert Creek on Saturday morning. Crews long-lined him out to a marina in Howe Sound, where paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene. Search manager Bruce Moffatt said the area the area where the man’s body was found is a difficult place for search and rescue operations.