Snow avalanches are among the most destructive natural hazards threatening human life, ecosystems, built structures, and landscapes in mountainous regions.
Avalanches and landslides are common in Himalayan Kashmir. Avalanches have caused some of the heaviest tolls for the Indian and Pakistani armies camping in the region. Each winter in Colorado, avalanches pose a serious risk to residents, visitors, and travelers. Since 1950, they have killed more people in the state than any other natural hazard, and Colorado accounts for a third of all avalanche deaths in the United States.
The Indian army said in Feb 2018, that three soldiers were killed when an avalanche struck their Himalayan post in the Indian portion of Kashmir. The army said the soldiers died in the Machhil sector near the Line of Control that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan. Avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a mountainside. In 2016, at least 14 Indian soldiers were killed in two avalanches in the region. In 2012, a massive avalanche in the Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir killed 140 people, including 129 soldiers.
In order to prevent damage and associated costs, early warning systems have proved highly beneficial. Early warning systems for natural hazards have seen tremendous development in recent years. Early warning systems enable preventative measures and damage reduction by providing early information on an imminent event.
In Switzerland the institute of snow and avalanche has created an early warning system for avalanches, it works by taking regular measurements of the weather surrounding the mountains, the air measurements and the temperature on the ground. They record the measurements every half hour and input the gathered data into a computer which highlights the possibilities of the snow melting and sends an early warning to the people in the area, warning them that the snow might melt if conditions get worse or if skiers cross certain areas. This warning system has been in place for around 13 years because there were many avalanches before designing this system.
Wireless sensor networks are also being used for the purpose of Avalanche monitoring. Sensor nodes can be deployed at avalanche prone sections of the avalanche prone sections of the mountain. This eliminates the need of manual monitoring of the region, thus eliminating human error as well as achieving real time monitoring.
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