Forest Service OKs Remote Blasting Of Avalanches On Berthoud Pass
WINTER PARK, Colo. (AP/CBS4) - The U.S. Forest Service has approved the use of remote-controlled blasters to trigger small snowslides in an attempt to keep big avalanches from blocking Berthoud Pass near Winter Park Resort.
The Colorado Department of Transportation will use the system in an active avalanche shoot known as the Stanley Slide, which crosses U.S. Highway 40 in two locations on the east side of the pass. The system will involve five fixed devices, which can be triggered remotely, to release propane-fueled blasts of compressed air.
The system will ultimately replace the current practice of firing shells from howitzers into avalanche zones on the pass.
"The remote avalanche system will be the first of its kind for CDOT, although similar systems have been used successfully for years on Wolf Creek Pass as well as in other western states, Canada and Europe," K. Reid Armstrong from the U.S. Forest Service said in a statement.
Crews plan to install the blasters next summer.
LINK: Colorado Avalanche Information Center
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