Snow totals rise at resorts but avalanche dangers are high

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (ABC4) – It’s a Utah power day!

Utah’s latest winter storm slammed the state with a heavy blanket of wet snow, giving skiers and snowboarders a chance to celebrate the new year by taking to the slopes. The fresh powder doesn’t come without its dangers, however, as avalanche dangers remain high across Utah’s mountains.

Utah ski resorts benefitted the storm, with some resorts receiving over three feet of snow in the last two days. Brighton Ski Resort, for example, received a healthy dose of 37 inches, bringing its base up to just over seven feet of snow. Solitude is also celebrating over 30 inches of snow, seeing it’s base raise to 77 inches.

Sundance’s mountain’s were hit with 31 inches of snow over the last 48 hours, according to Ski Utah’s snow report. Despite the new snow totals, the resort said it will be closed while Rocky Mountain Power works to restore power after widespread outages affected over 10,000 Utahns.

All the fresh snow has done more than just raise snow totals at Utah’s ski resorts. It also raised the dangers for avalanches throughout Utah’s mountain ranges. According to the Utah Avalanche Center, dangers are high throughout Utah and they could be large and destructive.

In the center’s avalanche forecasts throughout the state, the Avlanche Center warns that both natural and human triggered avalanches are likely. For the Ogden area, the center warns to avoid traveling on or underneath slopes over 30 degrees. In the Uintah’s, a foreboding warning reads, “any avalance triggered is going to be deep, dangerous, and unsurvivable.”

According to the National Weather Service of Salt Lake City, the avalanche warning will be in effect until 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 3. Even so, resort crews won’t let the warnings stop them from opening the slopes. Crews are working to make sure their slopes are safe for skiers and snowboarders who are looking to get in one last ride before the end of the holiday.

“Our patrollers are currently working on clearing avalanche hazards this morning,” Solitude officials said in their snow report. “Be sure to keep an eye on the Solitude app or our website for updates as we work to open more terrain.”

See below for the full Ski Utah snow report’s last 48 hour totals and latest base totals.

Alta
29 inches // 117 inches

Beaver Mountain
8 inches // 60 inches

Brian Head
20 inches // 59 inches

Brighton
37 inches // 87 inches

Cherry Peak
9 inches // 40 inches

Deer Valley
34 inches // 83 inches

Eagle Point
18 inches // 55 inches

Nordic Valley
7 inches // 38 inches

Park City Mountain
25 inches // 84 inches

Powder Mountain
6 inches // 40 inches

Snowbasin
19 inches // 73 inches