Three of the five snowmobilers who died in the avalanche near McBride last week had deployed airbags as they were swept away, the B.C. Coroners Service said.
The airbags designed to "float" someone along the surface of a moving avalanche but were ineffective because the victims were in a gully at the bottom of a slope - an area where the debris flow of the avalanche is too constricted.
A total of 17 snowmobilers were in the Mount Renshaw Alpine Recreation Site on Jan. 29 when the avalanche hit.
The majority of groups had proper rescue equipment with them were quick enough on self-rescues to prevent more deaths, officials said.
However, even better than knowing to respond to an avalanche incident is knowing how to prevent one from occurring in the first place, said Avalanche Canada executive director Gilles Valade.
"Avalanche safety education is essential for all winter backcountry recreationists," said
Valade. "Basic skills, such as recognizing avalanche terrain and not exposing multiple people to overhead hazard, make a big difference in reducing the consequences of an event."
All the riders killed were from Alberta. The tragedy occurred just six days after Prince George resident Kenny Carpino died in an avalanche in the Torpy Mountain area.
The vast majority of fatal avalanches are triggered by the victim or someone in the victim's party. Avalanche skills training courses teach proper trip planning, terrain selection and safe travel techniques, which can be effective in preventing accidents.
Information about current safety conditions, as well as training courses and equipment needs can be found at Avalanche Canada's website, www.avalanche.ca, as well as through the North Rockies Information Share on Facebook.
