Intense.
Dramatic.
Amazing.
Under control.
These are just a few words that come to mind when we think of avalanches in the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure. Our Avalanche Safety Program takes our technicians across the province to keep highway travellers safe and B.C. moving.
In Bear Pass, a 65-kilometre stretch of Highway 37A, between Meziadin Junction and the coastal community of Stewart, we monitor about 70 avalanche paths between mid November until early May. These paths stand shoulder to shoulder along the steep, sharp peaks of the glaciated Cambria Icefield of the Coast Mountains, and when our technicians trigger avalanches here, the snow really gets rolling.
Avalanche by the numbers:
- Our avalanche technicians are stationed at 8 key locations around the province.
- During the winter months the avalanche technicians maintain a constant watch over weather and snowpack conditions in 62 avalanche prone areas.
- Highway closures due to avalanche control typically last between 2 – 4 hours.
If you’re travelling in an avalanche zone in B.C. during the winter, please drive to conditions and drive carefully, prepare yourself and your vehicle for winter driving and remember to check DriveBC for advisories, including closures for avalanche control.
Join the discussion