Yukon avalanche warning system nets $800K

The Yukon Avalanche Association has received $800,000 in federal grants to set up a territory-wide avalanche warning system.

The funding will go towards a two-year pilot project. The forecasting system could be up and running by next January, according to officials.

Backcountry skiers, snowboarders and snowmobilers have not had an official warning system for decades, meaning avalanche conditions and data were spread mainly by word of mouth.

"Finally, we're going to have proper data that will be give a proper forecasting for the White Pass," Stephan Poirier, a Whitehorse-area avalanche safety instructor, told CBC News.

In April 2010, an avalanche in Kluane National Park killed Honza Galac, a 29-year-old backcountry skier originally from the Czech Republic.

Close calls this past winter include a snowmobile rider who was buried in the Wheaton Valley and a skier who was buried up to his neck in the White Pass area.

"Common sense has seemed to go by the wayside lately. Anything that's going to help us and the general public would be much appreciated," said Harris Cox, a director with the Klondike Snowmobile Association.

The federal funding will help pay for remote weather and snow data sensors, as well as allow the Yukon Avalanche Association to hire professional snow technicians in the winter months.

"We're not trying to keep people out of the mountains. We're just trying to [help] manage some of the decisions when they're in the mountains," said Kirstie Simpson, the association's president.