Avalanche: Girdwood

Location: Penguin Ridge - West of Girdwood

Date:

March 22, 2015 4:46

Observer:

W Wagner

Route & General Observations

View from Girdwood

Avalanche Details

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Trigger	Natural	Remote Trigger	0
Avalanche Type	0	Aspect	Southeast
Elevation	2400ft	Slope Angle	unknown
Crown Depth	18in	Width	100ft
Vertical Run	200ft

Avalanche Details

This slab avalanche occurred on Sunday, March 22nd 2015 after several days of mild weather. There is a wet loose avalanche running toward the top of the crown but it never quite got to the crown (maybe it triggered a collapse which initiated the failure in the weak snow under the slab??). Most likely this avalanche was triggered by intense sunshine that warmed the slab and increased the stress on the underlying weak layer.

Red Flags

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Obvious signs of instability

Recent Avalanches?	Yes
Collapsing (Whumphing)?	No
Cracking (Shooting cracks)?	No

Weather & Snow Characteristics

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Weather

Sunny and warm with light winds.

Photos & Video

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Natural avalanche on March 22nd.

Location

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