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Christmas Eve avalanche on Mount Washington prompts warning for hikers
Avalanche risk will be elevated for the next week, officials said.
A large natural avalanche occurred Tuesday on Mount Washington after several inches of fresh snow fell, officials said.
The avalanche took place in the Hillman’s Highway area in Tuckerman Ravine. There were several hours of wind, the Mount Washington Avalanche Center said, which led to wind loading: a process in which wind picks up snow from the windward side of the mountain and deposits it on the other side of the mountain, creating a heavy layer of snow that can cause an avalanche.
The organization said no one was injured or killed in the avalanche. Officials examined the debris field, but did not detect any human involvement, they said.
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The Avalanche Center, in a post on its Facebook page, said the risk of avalanches will be elevated “through the rest of the week.”
“Wind has the opportunity to continue moving light density snow and forming sensitive wind slabs,” the post said.
December is typically the snowiest month on Mount Washington, with peak snowfall often occurring in the fourth week of the month.
The Avalanche Center emphasized how critical it is to be able to assess stability and make terrain decisions “that support what you are seeing in the mountains,” and advised those who don’t know how to do that on their own to hire a guide.
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The center also shared a video on YouTube that was taken of the avalanche in real time from an Appalachian Mountain Club caretaker’s cabin.
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