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Two Skiers Die in Mt. Yotei Avalanche

Yotei
NISEKO NEWS

On 11 March three foreign nationals were caught in an avalanche on Mt. Yotei, resulting in the deaths of a man and a woman and one injury.

 

The victims were part of a group of six backcountry skiers and the Kutchan fire department was notified of the incident around 11am.

According to reporting by The Hokkaido Shimbun, several experts have mentioned that this may have been a “surface avalanche” in which a layer of recent snow sloughs off a harder, older layer of snow underneath.

Such avalanches are likely to occur when there is snowmelt caused by warm weather, followed by a refreeze and then fresh snowfall, conditions that match Niseko’s unseasonably warm temperatures in February and then heavy snowfall in March.

Source:
The Hokkaido Shimbun – 11 March 2024

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