While Western Canada may no longer be under an official avalanche warning, Parks Canada is urging hikers to avoid dangerous areas.
The federal agency is raising concern over activities in two national parks in B.C.—Yoho and Kootenay—as well as in Banff National Park in Alberta.
“Due to unseasonably warm weather, a lack of overnight refreezes and a structurally weak snowpack, the parks are in the midst of the largest natural avalanche cycle of the season,” Parks Canada wrote in an email to CTV News Thursday.
From April 27 through May 1, the three parks were all under a Special Public Avalanche Warning that Avalanche Canada issued in response to a dramatic increase in temperatures.
“Dangerous avalanche conditions exist for all mountainous regions in western Canada and the hazard increases with each day of warm air,” Mike Conlan, a senior avalanche forecaster with Avalanche Canada, said in the SPAW notice last week.
Parks Canada says that, despite the SPAW, its staff continued to see a large number of hikers venturing into avalanche terrain.
The federal agency says its staff has also noted many size four avalanches—ones large enough to “destroy a rail car, large truck, several buildings or forest area of up to four hectares”—running the full length of slide paths.
Parks Canada is warning all visitors to Banff, Yoho and Kootenay national parks to avoid avalanche terrain, including runout zones, until the dangerous conditions subside.
With files from CTV News Vancouver