Rescue commander on avalanche risk: 'This is really, really high hazard'

SALT LAKE CITY — Rescuers on Wednesday night urged people to use caution and common sense when heading to the backcountry in the days ahead, after a storm brought feet of new snow to some mountain locations following a largely anemic winter.

“If you get into a situation that says, ‘You know what, this is not how we thought our day was going to go,’ we should cut our losses and come home rather than push the limits just because there’s a bunch of fresh snow,” Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Commander Ryan Clerico said during an interview with KSL.

Clerico said he was concerned that all the new snow might bring out people willing to risk it despite the danger. He said now is not the time for that.

“This is really, really high hazard,” Clerico said. “That dry section in January really set us up for, kind of, some scary avalanches in the next few days.”

Clerico stopped short of advising people to avoid the backcountry, but said safety was a must.

He said people headed there should have the training and knowledge to recognize avalanche terrain and should also be aware that even going just beyond resort boundaries can leave people in potentially hazardous conditions.

Rescuers also urged people not to travel alone in the backcountry, to share their routes and return times with those they trust, and to take avalanche gear like beacons, shovels and probes along with reliable communications equipment, warm clothing, food, water, medical supplies and fire-starting materials.

The Utah Avalanche Center on Wednesday evening listed all areas across the state as having “high” avalanche danger, and forecasters in recent days said the atypical winter had the potential to create atypical avalanche hazards and avalanches where people normally don’t expect them.

Clerico said he and other rescuers hoped to avoid having to respond to a worst-case scenario.

“It’s difficult going into those situations,” Clerico said. “We hope we don’t see that here in the next few days.”

Related: Heavy snowfall brings high avalanche danger in the backcountry

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