January 16, 2024 |
Photo – Arctic air moves in over the past weekend – Courtesy mountwashington.org
The nation is slowly coming out of the deep freeze that rode in on a massive wave of arctic air over the weekend. Temperatures Monday plummeted to 20-to-40 degrees below normal across a large swath of the nation.
Howling winds and snow closed roads and placed half of all Americans under wind chill watches and warnings.
The weather was blamed for four deaths in Oregon, where more than 90,000 people remained without power after being slammed by high winds, ice and snow. A snowmobiler also died Sunday night when hit by a semitrailer in Utah, where the mountains got nearly 4 feet of snow in a day.
Here in Wyoming, a backcountry skier was killed after triggering a 50-foot-wide avalanche south of Jackson and northeast of Star Valley Ranch. According to the Jackson Hole News and Guide, the skier was killed Sunday east of Etna due to dangerous snowpack in the Teton area.
“This is not an avalanche problem you can cheat,” said Frank Carus, executive director of the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center. “This is worse than Colorado.”
Given the conditions, forecasters are telling people to avoid traveling through or underneath avalanche terrain.
According to the report, the skier who died Sunday was part of a two-man team skiing a ridge known as Little Poudre in Prater Canyon. The skiers were experienced and familiar with the route in the Wyoming Range above Star Valley Ranch, Carus said. He added that their familiarity with the area may have allowed them to lower their guard to the danger.
“This is not the same snowpack you’re used to,” he said.
Here in southern Wyoming, temperatures will warm up today to the mid-20s after the deep freeze finally begins to ease up. On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday the temperatures will push back into the 30s with an increased chance of snow.
Chris Hammer, lead meteorologist with the National Weather Service of Cheyenne, said no more snowfall is expected today, but temperatures will remain extremely cold through this morning.
The warming trend in southern Wyoming will begin once we get through this morning.
