Avalanche risk will be high this weekend in the Alps and in the western and central Pyrenees. Expect numerous natural releases of wet snow, mainly at high altitude and during the hottest hours of the day.
The current heatwave is rapidly increasing the altitude of the 0°C isotherm. On Saturday, this will reach 4,400 m in the Pyrenees and 4,100 m in the Alps leading to a rapid, in-depth humidification of the snowpack, which will be accentuated in the Pyrenees by the strong winds expected throughout the weekend. As a result, the risk of wet snow avalanches starting spontaneously will increase rapidly during the day. On steep slopes, avalanches could grow in size, carrying away all the snow in place and sometimes descending to areas with little or no snow.
The risk should diminish from Monday onwards. Extreme caution is advised when hiking and off-piste. For further information, please consult the Bulletins d'Estimation du Risque d'Avalanche on the website www.meteofrance.com - page Montagne or the Météo-France mobile app, and ask local mountain professionals.