Backcountry Avalanche Warning Issued

KETCHUM, Idaho (KLIX) – The Sawtooth Avalanche Center has issued an avalanche warning for several backcountry areas in Blaine, Camas and Elmore counties.

The warning is for the "Soldier Mountains and the mountains bordering the Wood River Valley near Bellevue, Hailey, and Ketchum,” the center said in an advisory late Tuesday afternoon. “The avalanche danger for the warning area is high.”

The advisory said heavy snowfall and drifting will combine to overload weak snowpack, heightening the chance of avalanches. If avalanches occur they may impact roadways and structures in the valley.

The advisory cautions:

VERY DANGEROUS AVALANCHE CONDITIONS EXIST. TRAVEL IN AVALANCHE TERRAIN IS NOT RECOMMENDED. AVALANCHES MAY RUN LONG DISTANCES, INTO FLAT AREAS, AND CAN RUN INTO MATURE FORESTS. STAY OFF OF AND OUT FROM UNDER STEEP SLOPES - SLOPES STEEPER THAN ABOUT 30 DEGREES.