Interior Health is urging people to be prepared and extremely cautious in the backcountry.
This comes as danger ratings continue to be high in various areas in the Interior, along with multiple deaths.
“Being caught in an avalanche is a life threatening situation that has already claimed 12 lives in Interior Health this season.” says Dr. Fatemeh Sabet, Medical Health Officer.
“There has been more than double the number of avalanche fatalities, compared to the previous season, and we are only halfway through the season.”
In a release from Interior Health and Avalanche Canada, they say that the sunny weather in the forecast could make the snowpack even less stable.
Sabet added that Avalanche Canada continues to monitor a deep, persistent slab avalanche problem affecting multiple areas in the Interior.
Avalanche Canada expects the conditions to last for the remainder of the winter season, and potentially into summer.
For more information on avalanche conditions, you can visit Avalanche Canada’s website here.