A dramatic video shows a snowboarder triggering and then outpacing an avalanche on New Hampshire’s Mount Washington last month. The video shows the moment a layer of snow started to slide down the mountain behind the snowboarder going down Tuckerman Ravine.
SARGENT’S PURCHASE, N.H. – A dramatic video recorded in New Hampshire shows a snowboarder triggering and then escaping a small avalanche on Mount Washington.
The video, recorded by Andrew Drummond on Nov. 29, shows the moment when the layer of snow starts to slide down the mountain behind the snowboarder who was headed down Tuckerman Ravine.
This image shows a snowboarder triggering and escaping a small avalanche on New Hampshires Mount Washington on Nov. 29, 2024.
(Andrew Drummond via Storyful / FOX Weather)
The Mount Washington Avalanche Center described the avalanche as a “small, thin wind slab.”
According to avalanche.org, a wind slab is “the release of a cohesive layer of snow (a slab) formed by the wind–drifted snow.
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How to survive an avalanche
An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a mountain, hill or any steep incline.
Avalanches can be sudden, but there are warning signs you can look out for when you’re outdoors to help you stay safe.
According to the National Weather Service, avalanches generally occur on slopes steeper than 30 degrees. Recent avalanches, shooting cracks and “whumping” sounds are signs of an unstable snowpack.
And sometimes it doesn’t take much to trigger an avalanche, such as the snowboarder in the video at the top of this story.
A group of skiers in the French Alps caught video of an avalanche speeding down a mountainside.
Before venturing out, determine if you are on or below slopes where avalanches can occur and whether the snow in the area is stable. For current snowpack conditions, refer to your local avalanche center.
You should also carry a transceiver so you can be found if you are buried in snow, a shovel so you can dig yourself or someone else out from under the snow, and a probe to locate someone who may be buried.