Item: Winter 2016-2017 snowfall and avalanche emergency management in Italy (Central Appennines) - a review
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Title: Winter 2016-2017 snowfall and avalanche emergency management in Italy (Central Appennines) - a review
Proceedings: International Snow Science Workshop Proceedings 2018, Innsbruck, Austria
Authors:
- Chiambretti, Igor [ AINEVA, Trento, TN, Italy ]
- Sofia Stefano [ Centro Funzionale Regione Marche, Ancona, AN, Italy ]
Date: 2018-10-07
Abstract: The winter of 2016-2017 set a new record for snowfall and avalanches activity for Central Appennines of Italy (Marche, Abruzzo and Molise regions). Tens of destructive avalanches were reported during the 3rd week of January 2017 from several locations across the area. Several hamlets and infrastructures were menaced or hit by those events and in the Rigopiano site an hotel was totally destroyed with a death toll of 29 victims. This paper describes the general scenario which produced such events, how Italian avalanche technicians operated during the emergency aiding the Civil Protection in managing the situation and the subsequent scenario analysis. High resolution satellite images highlighted hundreds of avalanche events with impressive soft slab and loose snow avalanches which deposited massive piles of snow, woody debris and rocks in the tracks and in the runout zones creating fresh trimlines or widening the existing historical avalanche paths. Such disturbing events left behind many mature downed trees and extensive areas of vegetation damage, providing a unique opportunity to improve our knowledge of local avalanche spatial distribution and magnitude which was otherwise scarce and of poor quality.
Language of Article: English
Presenters:
Keywords: winter 2016-2017, avalanche emergency management, Central Appennines
Page Number(s): 1445-1449
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Digital Abstract Not Available
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