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Front Range avalanche warning as storm system approaches

Posted at 4:17 PM, Dec 12, 2019
and last updated 2019-12-12 18:17:42-05

DENVER (AP) — Two rounds of heavy snowfall will increase backcountry avalanche danger in many regions of Colorado through the weekend.

That’s the word from the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, which issued a special advisory Thursday for the Front Range and other mountain areas. The center said a potent storm system could drop 1 to 2 feet of snow on an already-weak snowpack beginning Thursday.

It said avalanche danger will increase Friday and into the weekend both above and below treeline. Advisories also were issued for Vail and Summit counties, northern Colorado, the Grand Mesa, the Aspen and Gunnison regions and the Sawatch, San Juan and Sangre de Cristo ranges.

“Pay attention to rapidly changing conditions and plan on dialing back your terrain choices for the weekend,” the center advised.

Colorado recorded its first avalanche death of the season when a 29-year-old woman was caught in a slide while backcountry skiing in Larimer County on Sunday.