UAFC General Information The Utah Avalanche Forecast Center ---------------------------------- Updated November 17th 1995 - The Utah Avalanche Forecast Center holds free lectures throughoutthe season. They might be having one in that time period. They also have an excellent daily avalanche/mountain weather forecast updated every morning at 7:00a.m. call 801-364-1581 to hear it.For more info on when they may be holding a lecture or beacon clinic, their office # is 801-524-5304. They also have moved their forecast to the web at http://www.wasatch.com/~wafc/ I don't think it has been updated this season yet. Summary ------- This information follows: Phone numbers for current forecast information Background information on the avalanche hazard in Utah UAFC Mission Statement Friends of the UAFC Info Budget Challenges Getting involved We are working on getting the daily forecast posted to this gopher system, but do not have any estimate yet on when this might happen. Comments, questions, and other feedback are welcome. Contact Jim Frankenfield at snowman@aip.org or Friends of the UAFC at: 4760 Highland Drive, Suite 219 Salt Lake City, UT 84117-5009 801-488-1003 Forecast Telephone Numbers -------------------------- For recorded avalanche, snowpack, and mountain weather information call: Salt Lake City: 801-364-1581 Ogden: 801-621-2362 Park City: 801-649-2250 Logan: 801-797-4146 Provo: 801-374-9770 Moab: 801-259-SNOW Background Information ---------------------- Since the 19th century, avalanches have killed more people in Utah than any other natural hazard. A unique combination of steep mountains, heavy snowfall, and large numbers of people creates the recipe for avalanche hazard. Despite this danger, more snowmobilers, snowboarders, ski tourers, snowshoers, and helicopter skiers visit Utah's mountains every year. Without a credible avalanche advisory service and an effective avalanche education program, these recreationists are on a collision course with disaster. Thirty eight people have died in avalanches in Utah since 1940, more than from any other natural hazard. Twenty two people have died in the Salt Lake section of the Wasatch Mountains since 1940; 73% died in the backcountry and 91% died while participating in recreational activities. Ninety five percent of all avalanche accidents occur when people trigger the avalanche that catches them. Avalanche accidents are largely a matter of choice, not chance. Thus the need for reliable advisories and for avalanche awareness programs which teach people how to recognize and avoid dangerous terrain and unstable snow conditions. UAFC Mission Statement ---------------------- The Utah Avalanche Forecast Center (UAFC) is committed to providing the information needed to keep everyone safely on top of "The Greatest Snow on Earth", not buried beneath it. The USDA Forest Service in partnership with the NOAA National Weather Service established the UAFC in 1980 to help combat the rising tide of Utah avalanche fatalities. More Utahn's die in avalanches than from any other natural hazard. The UAFC has three charters: - Issue backcountry avalanche advisories to the public via a network of telephone recordings. - Improve awareness of avalanche danger among Utah's residents and visitors through multi-media lectures, short field courses, and information provided to local and national media. - Issue mountain weather forecasts to the public and to cooperators in the UAFC information network, which includes ski areas, UDOT, and other agencies. The UAFC operates from two offices in order to provide accurate local education and information for Utah's diverse and widespread backcountry areas. In northern Utah, the UAFC directs its efforts to people in the Salt Lake, Cache, and Utah Valleys, and provides forecasts primarily for the Wasatch Mountains from the Utah-Idaho border south to Spanish Fork Canyon. The public accesses these forecasts through a three to five minute recorded message on free local telephone numbers in Salt Lake City, Logan, Ogden, Park City, and Provo. On request, the UAFC advises the public of conditions in less visited backcountry areas in northern Utah. The UAFC's northern office is administered by the Salt Lake Ranger District of the Wasatch-Cache National Forest and staffed by four Forest Service Employees. The National Weather Service Provides office space and other resources at the Executive Terminal Building at Salt Lake International Airport. In southeastern Utah, the UAFC tailors its education efforts to residents and visitors in Moab, and concentrates its forecasts on conditions in the La Sal Mountains. Because these mountains see fewer visits than the mountains in northern Utah, the UAFC's southeastern office updates forecasts less often. The Manti-La Sal National Forest administers this southeastern office; it is staffed by a Forest Service employee and a local volunteer. The UAFC receives nearly twice the number of calls per season as any other avalanche advisory service in North America. It does this on less than half the funding. Friends of the UAFC ------------------- The FoUAFC is a tax exempt, non-profit corporation. It was organized in 1991 to help the UAFC provide the information that skiers, snowmobilers, snowboarders, snowshoers and climbers need to safely enjoy Utah's mountains. FoUAFC supports the UAFC by contributing funds, equipment, and labor towards avalanche education, forecasting, and research. FoUAFC mission is to: - Help Utah's residents and visitors safely enjoy winter recreation. - Assist the UAFC in providing public avalanche education. - Solicit donations of equipment, labor, or funds which improve the quality of the UAFC's education and forecasting services. - Aid the UAFC in conducting avalanche research. Budget Challenges ----------------- The UAFC is at a crucial point in its development. The USDA Forest Service has previously funded most of the UAFC's budget. However,agency-wide cutbacks will dramatically reduce UAFC funding for the 93-94 season. The Wasatch- Cache National Forest's contribution to the UAFC will total only $40,000, or 60% of its $68,000 contribution for the previous season. Further cuts are anticipated in future seasons. FoUAFC is devoting much time and effort to forming new funding partnerships. It is felt that a more diversified funding base will not only maintain the high quality of services provided but strengthen the program through a higher sense of community ownership. Getting Involved ---------------- FoUAFC is entirely a volunteer operation. Help is always needed. Can you serve over a period of time as a Board of Directors member or a chairperson? Can you help organize and run a fundraising event? Can you just distribute posters, address envelopes, and lick stamps on occasion? We need all of the above, and more. For more information on how you can help, contact Jim Frankenfield at snowman@aip.org or Friends of the UAFC at: 4760 Highland Drive, Suite 219 Salt Lake City, UT 84117-5009 801-488-1003 *********************************************************************** Jim Frankenfield snowman@aip.org 1338 Foothill Dr #170; Salt Lake City, UT 84108 1-800-289-4403 (in US) *********************************************************************** [Submitted by: Jim Frankenfield (snowman@aip.org) Wed, 23 Nov 1994 23:08:36 -0800 (PST)] University of Utah is not responsible for this data -------------