Starting bright and early on Friday, March 1, snow kept stacking up in Jasper until the morning hours on Sunday, March 3. Accumulating up to 60 cm in some areas, this was the largest snowfall of the 2012/13 season. Warm temperatures meant the snow was wet and heavy, and by Friday afternoon Parks Canada closed the northern section of the Icefields Parkway due to increasing avalanche hazard.
The decision to close a road during these types of conditions is just the first step for Parks Canada’s Highways crew and Visitor Safety team. What happens next is a coordinated effort between two professional, dedicated crews.
After closing gates at Valley of the Five Lakes and Saskatchewan Crossing, Parks Canada manned gates at both ends to ensure drivers that were already on the road could exit. Staff also conducted a sweep along the road, checking for vehicles at all parking lots and day-use areas and sharing information to help ensure visitors could proceed safely out of the closed area. If vehicles were unattended, employees placed a placard with information on the parked vehicle and then checked license plate numbers against our backcountry permit database. Checking back-country permits helps us keep park visitors safe by knowing where they are prior to beginning avalanche control work.
Meanwhile, highway crews continued work on Highway 16 and other park roads, while also plowing the Icefields Parkway where safe to do so. When avalanche control work is required, the visitor safety team coordinates closely with the highways crew. After visitor safety triggered controlled avalanches from the ground and helicopter on Sunday, March 3, and Monday, March 4, the highways crew was ready with two loaders and trucks for plowing and sanding. By 3 p.m. on Monday, March 4, the Icefields Parkway was re-opened with good driving conditions.
While avalanche danger and avalanche control activities can necessitate emergency road closures at any time, the warmth of the spring sun over the next few weeks may call for afternoon closures, which may occur with short notice. For the most up-to-date information on road conditions and road closures, travellers can check the Alberta Road Report at 511.alberta.ca, contact Jasper National Park’s Road Report Information line at 780-852-3311, or check the Road Conditions Report on our website at . Parks Canada also provides daily Avalanche Bulletins to assist backcountry users in decision making. The bulletins contain timely and detailed information on current avalanche conditions and forecasts for 3 days forward, and are available on our website at (Avalanche Bulletins).
