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| According to Canadian Avalanche Centre statistics, the typical avalanche victim is male and in his twenties. Although most avalanches occur between January and March, there is still a danger in the warmer months from May to October. |
Several years ago the CAA recognized the need to revamp its old Level 2 training program for technical training of avalanche workers, ski hill operators and highway workers who control avalanches threatening highways. Now the CAA is taking a more comprehensive approach to avalanche training in Canada, by including best risk management practices and linking those best practices to human behaviour and decision making, because there is a growing awareness that technical training alone is not enough to prevent accidents.
The Avalanche Decision-making And Professionals Training (ADAPT) program was implemented this season to provide state of the art training for avalanche workers in Canada. This new project, funded by the New SAR Initiatives Fund (NIF) and sponsored by Parks Canada and Heritage Canada, was a two-year project to develop this new training program for avalanche professionals.
Canadian Avalanche Association Training schools are the only formal provider for avalanche safety training for avalanche industry workers in Canada. And according to the CAA, Level 2 training is necessary for mountain guides, ski guides and avalanche control operators in ski areas and highways.
Understanding risks
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| Clair Israelson, Executive Director of the Canadian Avalanche Association, was an avalanche forecaster from 1972 to 1990. In that time, he formed an effective snow research and avalanche control program. |
The ADAPT program focuses on risk management and decision making processes for avalanche workers who are out in avalanche terrain every day through the winter doing their work. With a better understanding of how humans perceive potential risks and their personal and team decision making processes, the CAA believes it is helping to change attitudes toward risk taking, and is achieving improved safety for workers, and for the public that avalanche workers are responsible to protect.
According to Clair Israelson, Executive Director of the Canadian Avalanche Association, the response to ADAPT has been so positive that it is hard to keep up with the demand from the industry.
"People are saying they wish ADAPT had been available 15 to 20 years ago, because this training fundamentally changes the way we think about both personal and public safety," he said.
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Mountain Equipment Co-op
provided $50,000 over two years towards the Canadian Avalanche Association's
public avalanche safety programs.
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The Association feels this program will result in improved operational decisions by avalanche workers, and reduce the number of injuries and lives lost due to avalanches.
Avalanche workers and the recreational public are already aware of the potential for avalanches and most are carrying avalanche beacons, shovels and probes when backcountry skiing. Avalanche beacons emit a radio signal, and if a burial occurs, searchers can quickly locate people trapped under the snow.
For the future, Mr. Israelson said he sees a need for better communication tools between professional operations and with the public, such as the use of graphics along with text to communicate the technicalities of avalanche data more clearly.
Over the last 50 years, an average of more than four tropical storms or hurricanes have posed a threat to Canada or its territorial waters each year. Over the last eight years, this average has increased to nearly six per year. Tropical storms and hurricanes cause storm surges, floods, high waves, damaging winds, heavy rainfalls and erosion, according to Environment Canada's Canadian Hurricane Centre (CHC).
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HURRICANE FACTS
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In the past decade, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of hurricanes and tropical storms in the Atlantic, from as few as seven to as many as 19. According to the CHC, 2001 was the third straight year that six tropical cyclones entered the CHC Response Zone, with four tropical storms passing through the same Newfoundland marine forecast area in one 30-day span. In 2002, the number of named storms in the Atlantic was above normal, at 12. However, the number of named storms reaching hurricane strength was only four (compared to the 50 year average of six).
Even if a hurricane does not touch Canadian land, it can still create severe weather for coastal areas and for any boats in the water.
In a rare meteorological event of the century, three separate weather systems were on a collision course and met to create the "perfect storm" in the fall of 1991. A Great Lakes storm system moving east, a Canadian cold front moving south, and Hurricane Grace moving northeast were all headed for the North Atlantic.
Although there were warnings from Environment Canada and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, it seemed improbable that such a storm could develop. Further, because the storm developed so rapidly, people on land and fishermen weren't as prepared as they could have been. This led to search and rescue efforts in coastal towns and out in the sea.
With high winds and reduced visibility, SAR providers had a difficult task in the air and on the land. Because the conditions were hazardous, SAR providers could have decided to call of their searches, but they continued to search for survivors.
For more information on hurricanes and tropical storms, visit the Canadian Hurricane Centre's website.
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