1 Killed, 3 injured in B.C. avalanche

An avalanche in southeastern British Columbia killed one person and injured three others, Canadian authorities said. The three survivors of the Friday afternoon avalanche in Elk Valley near Sparwood were taken to Sparwood Hospital in stable condition, Postmedia News reported. It was unknown if there are any other survivors or what the victims had been doing when the avalanche struck. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have taken over the investigation. A "special public avalanche warning" was issued Friday for recreational back-country users by the Canadian Avalanche Center and is in effect during the weekend. The warning includes the mountains of the South Coast Inland, the Columbia Mountains from near Prince George in the north to the U.S. border in the south and British Columbia's South Rockies, the Avalanche Center said. Ilya Storm, the center's avalanche warning services coordinator, said in a news release avalanches were likely to be much bigger than expected and could be triggered from a distance or at the bottom of a slope. Storm also said slopes typically considered safer -- those with lower angles and below treeline -- were "primed" for being triggered by humans. Storm said local knowledge and extensive training and experience are needed to travel safely in avalanche terrain. The center urges all recreational back-country users to monitor bulletins and be equipped with a shovel, probe and transceiver. The center also advises back-country users to take an avalanche awareness course.