Avalanche Warnings Are Issued in Northwest (nytimes.com) 58
Two avalanche warnings have been issued for parts of Washington and Oregon as heavier-than-usual rainfall and snowfall is expected to hit part of the West Coast through Monday. From a report: One of the warnings, a Level 4 on a scale of 5, said there was a high avalanche danger for parts of North Cascades National Park by the Canadian border, extending south through Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest and into parts of Gifford Pinchot National Forest, which is about 140 miles southeast of Seattle. The warning was in effect until Monday evening and also covered part of Mount Hood National Forest, which is about 70 miles east of Portland, Ore. A separate, Level 5 warning, indicating extreme danger, also covered smaller parts of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, about 80 miles west of Moses Lake, Wash. That warning, which said heavy snow, strong winds and warming temperatures could create avalanche conditions, was also in effect until Monday evening.
The warnings were issued by the Northwest Avalanche Center, which said at least 30 people in the United States had been killed in avalanches so far this season. That's the highest number of fatalities since the 2015-16 season, according to the center. The warnings came as parts of the Pacific Northwest braced for heavier-than-usual precipitation as a result of an "atmospheric river," the National Weather Service said on Twitter. That type of weather event -- "a long river of moisture" that can hover over concentrated areas for a period of time -- is expected to lead to very heavy rainfall or, in higher elevations, intense snowfall, said meteorologists at the Weather Service in Seattle. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration described such events as "rivers in the sky." This one extends about 3,000 miles, from the coast of British Columbia to the coast of Hawaii, said Dustin Guy, a Weather Service meteorologist. Though Seattle may see only about half an inch of rain, coastal areas and mountain regions can expect up to three inches, said another Weather Service meteorologist, Matthew Cullen. In high-elevation places, like the Cascade Mountains, one to two feet of snow may fall in elevations above 4,000 feet, he said.
The warnings were issued by the Northwest Avalanche Center, which said at least 30 people in the United States had been killed in avalanches so far this season. That's the highest number of fatalities since the 2015-16 season, according to the center. The warnings came as parts of the Pacific Northwest braced for heavier-than-usual precipitation as a result of an "atmospheric river," the National Weather Service said on Twitter. That type of weather event -- "a long river of moisture" that can hover over concentrated areas for a period of time -- is expected to lead to very heavy rainfall or, in higher elevations, intense snowfall, said meteorologists at the Weather Service in Seattle. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration described such events as "rivers in the sky." This one extends about 3,000 miles, from the coast of British Columbia to the coast of Hawaii, said Dustin Guy, a Weather Service meteorologist. Though Seattle may see only about half an inch of rain, coastal areas and mountain regions can expect up to three inches, said another Weather Service meteorologist, Matthew Cullen. In high-elevation places, like the Cascade Mountains, one to two feet of snow may fall in elevations above 4,000 feet, he said.
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It's more like concrete when it packs around you. You can't move and if there are no other people with equipment to dig you out, you will die.
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It will melt in the spring.
Re:Bullshit (Score:5, Insightful)
Humans have created Communities, Governments, Cities, Nations... Was beyond just having an organized military protection to fight off other people who might want to do harm, while that is part of it. It was an attempt to build a way to share resources and support a wider range of people, who cannot by themselves fully support themselves.
The Planter Family may live in an area that is fertile, and they grow a lot of food. The Fisher Family live near the ocean, where they can collect fish, The Miner family lives next to the mountain, where they can get a lot of metals. The Hunter Family lives in the forest where a lot of wildlife lives.
All these family by themselves may be able to survive on their own, however they all have things in excess that others may want, and will need things that they cannot get by themselves.
So they joined together, to share their goods and services, which allows them more time to produce more of what they are good at.
Now that being the case, if there is a problem where something is happening to a different family, you should help them out because you may have the resources, to help them out, and in turn they will be able to help you out when you are in trouble.
The idea of Rugged individualism has gone to its extreme, to where everyone is expected to fully take care of themselves no matter what. That is nearly impossible, when when it is, it becomes a general detriment to everyone involved.
The Individual will be so focused on daily survival, that they will not be able to enjoy any extra benefits. The other people will not be able to gain from their skills they may be better at.
We have a government and community to help regulate and manage support for all people within its jurisdiction. This included helping groups of people in need, making rules to make sure that distribution of goods and services have a strong long term plan. And protecting itself from other event. Now some governments do this better than others. A Good King, who feels his job is to serve his country, often runs a better country. While a Bad King who just collects the Excess for his own benefit causes a lot of problems. So other governments were created to try make communities work better, over a longer period of time.
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The Planter Family may live in an area that is fertile, and they grow a lot of food. The Fisher Family live near the ocean, where they can collect fish, The Miner family lives next to the mountain, where they can get a lot of metals. The Hunter Family lives in the forest where a lot of wildlife lives. All these family by themselves may be able to survive on their own, however they all have things in excess that others may want, and will need things that they cannot get by themselves.
The LOOTer Family expects a government to confiscate goods and services from all of the above to provide themselves with a livelihood.
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I've only seen news items of hikers and snowmobilers killed by avalanche in last hour. These hobbyists could have stayed home, why are you blathering about government being responsible to rescue those who should have stayed home instead of defying death and common sense? No, they're just a waste of tax dollars and they'll continue to do stupid shit and needing rescue.
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Are you are saying people don't deserve to be saved, because they are doing something that isn't directly productive?
We cannot live in a 0 risk environment. There is always risk, Hiking and off road driving., while does have some risk, I wouldn't consider it a high risk activity. Besides people will tend to perform better, when they are able to take a break from their work, and refresh. Taking a Hike is a great way to clear your mind, and allow you to get back to work more clear headed.
The government and
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There is a vast, vast gulf "isn't directly productive" (e.g. watching porn) and "stupidly engaging in deadly high-risk activities (e.g. sky diving and skiing during avalanche warning time) Too bad your little bleeding heart powered brainless body can't tell the difference.
"The right thing to do" you blather without a shred of evidence or reason. Maybe it's just a waste of tax dollars. They could have stayed home instead, or gone to bingo.
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No, he is not. Why would you try to twist his words like that?
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Better information (Score:5, Informative)
This website gives highly accurate reports on avalanche risk in Washington and Oregon:
https://nwac.us/ [nwac.us]
There are also reports from people actually out in the field, sometimes with entertaining photos.
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Snowmobilers and backcountry skiers/boarders rejoice! The rest of us will struggle to give a fuck.
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it's funny to me because last week Utah was facing similar conditions and no one outside of the ski/snowboard world cared
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"Location, location, location!"
Everyone watching the news in the past 10 months has come to realize that the pacific NW is the epicenter of everything gradually turning to shit in the US, so anything happening up there is more interesting than similar events that occur in other places, I guess.
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It has as much to do with tech as the earlier story about "Disney+ Added Content Disclaimers to 18 Episodes of 'The Muppet Show' "
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Why is this on Slashdot? (Score:2)
Are we hoping to incite some kind of global warming debate?
It's a couple of avalanche warnings. It's not news for nerds, and it doesn't matter (unless you're an avalanche nerd or live in the area, to be fair).
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Because not every story can be about who Apple aren't making a car with.
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Yeah, I was like... as a Skier I see these regularly this is like "It's a late winter Tuesday in the PNW".
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It's going to be switching to rain over Snoqualmie Pass in a few days. So the snow at those too-low ski areas will be transitioning to the infamous "Cascade Concrete". Or, as the local ski areas refer to it in their promos, "great spring skiing conditions".
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No, it's not even news. Avalanche warnings are typical and usually broadcast everywhere as well as being posted at trailheads. It's so common it's not headline news anywhere - it just shows up as part of the regular weather report.
Anyone's who's going into the backcountry already know they should check the avalanche conditions prior to actually heading out. Th
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but clearly there was never avalanches at the rate we're seeing now and it's all due to Climate Change. Just like Texas freezing this time was Climate Change and the last 150 years of freezing every 15 years or so was just weather. We're doomed We're gonna die!
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Are we hoping to incite some kind of global warming debate?
It's a couple of avalanche warnings. It's not news for nerds, and it doesn't matter (unless you're an avalanche nerd or live in the area, to be fair).
Yea, and not even in a place where it would be unusual to see them. Now if it were in Florida, that would be news worthy enough to get it on /.
Buried and Thankful (Score:5, Interesting)
As a backcountry recreation advocate, specifically focused around snow sports like snowboarding, skiing, snowmobiling, snowbiking, etc, I am glad that these warnings are becoming more prolific across various news outlets and social media channels. Should this be Slashdot material? Ehhh, maybe if climate folk consider that appropriate, but the fact that I'm seeing these reports here gives me a big smile. Too many people have been lost in the past and information sharing most certainly would have saved some lives. Hell, 2-3 weeks ago was the deadliest week for avalanche fatalities in the history of the United States due to unprecedented heavy snowfall combined with previous rains and icy conditions that basically created a black ice road at high elevation. While I wish every single winter recreationalist would take the appropriate training needed to properly analyze the snowpack and rescue friends, the reality is most people just barely have the time to enjoy their outdoor experiences these days. It's not an excuse, but it's just how it is for some people.
I was fully buried in an avalanche 10 years ago for 8 minutes before I was reached and it was a terrifying but educating experience. My friend who was in the same slide as me was dead at 13 minutes when we pulled him out of the hole and thankfully he was revived quickly. Further down the mountain that morning there was another avalanche that took the life of a 50+ year old man. 10 years ago our avalanche forecasting and education was a fraction of what it is now. With the pandemic on and people itching to get out of the house, this absolutely bonkers winter (the weirdest one in terms of snowfall I can remember in almost 25 years) is setting people up for horrible deaths. We had a rider die here about 3 weeks ago in a slide that pushed him into a tree and tore out his entire chest... poor guy bled out and died right there in his friends arms. The old guys seem to think their luck of never being in an avalanche makes them an expert... but it was interesting to see that when all the warnings came out all my relatively younger riding friends (20's/30's) decided to stay home and play it safe.
I'm glad to see this information everywhere.
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Going out in the woods every day before work would be a dream. Too bad I work in Healthcare IT which basically means I'm the last person that gets to actually work from home. Seems backwards, but in order to support the physicians and associated staff that are here to actually see patients it's been full steam ahead since last March and, if anything, double the work load from pre-pandemic times.
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Glad that you learned from your experience! If one is not dug up after 15 minutes, the chances of survival decrease dramatically. Here are some more hints:
1. Always wear an avalanche tranceiver, and carry an avalanche shovel and spotting pole. I see this as a duty to my fellow freeriders and I expect them to carry that stuff as well so that I can also live to tell the story.
2. Avalanche warning level 4 is practically a stay-at-home warning for freeriders. Or go on a prepared track. Good time for cross-count
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According to the left the election never ended!
Even after two months, of the 20 or so news stories at the top of CNN's website right now, EIGHT are about "Orange man bad"
Re:Predicted response from right (Score:4)
According to the left the election never ended!
Even after two months, of the 20 or so news stories at the top of CNN's website right now, EIGHT are about "Orange man bad"
I wonder if Trump will end up owing taxes on all this rent free living he's doing in some people's heads.
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Many of us are eager to see a dangerous tyrant finally punished and CNN's statistical attention trackers key on that. How is that bad? If they instead chose the ranking internally, you'd probably accuse them of editorial bias. CNN can't win in the eyes of the right. It's looks you are pissing on them JUST to piss on them.
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The election is over, but brutal politics isn't.
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It's normal to joke sometimes and talk serious other times. Feynman did it. Carl Sagan did it. Do I need to tag it with #joke to avoid intent confusion?
Glad to see they mentioned Moses Lake (Score:2)
They pointed out where this is in relation to Seattle, but come on! Those of us who actually live up here reference all locations in terms of distance and direction from Moses Lake. Either there, or from Sekiu.
They "stole" our water (Score:2)
Because of La Nina and the "ridiculously resistant ridge" of high pressure, that atmospheric river went farther north than it should. It should have hit California several more times this year. Unless the high miraculously breaks down, we're crossing our fingers for a "miracle March" that probably won't happen. I haven't checked Sierra snowpacks recently, but I know they're below average. It's OK for the ski resorts, still enough for that; but probably not what's needed to avoid stern conservation rules
Bullshit editors (Score:1)
This shouldn't be on slashdot. Hell, this shouldn't be on the news either. If you live in ski country, you know there will be avalanches regularly once it snows heavily. The cult of Climate Change Witnesses is now trying hard to attribute every weather event to global warming, wind, rain, snow, freeze, or drought.