Avalanche app could save lives

A new app to keep people safe on the mountains this winter is to be unveiled ahead of the launch of this season’s daily avalanche forecast.

And poignantly, funding for the Be Avalanche Aware App has its roots in tragedy.

The initial financing of the app, which has cost more than £30,000 to develop, came from donations by the Glencoe Ski Club and a fund set up in memory of one of its members, Daniel Maddox.

Mr Maddox, 41, from Clackmannanshire, was caught in an avalanche in 2013. His body was found 24 hours later under 13ft of ice and snow.

Mark Diggins, coordinator of the Scottish Avalanche Information Service (SAIS), said it was “one of the most significant things to have been developed for mountaineers, snow sports enthusiasts and hillwalkers.” The free app will have images and video clips of features that could suggest risk as well as a map of the person’s location in relation to the risk.

“It will be an essential and really useful tool for understanding avalanche hazard. It has the potential to keep people safe,” said Mr Diggins, who helped develop the app.

“It will help people make their own decisions in the mountains. It will have tips, images, clips and map locations in relation to hazards.

“It will be useful for preparing to enjoy the outdoors.

“The hazard risk will always be there in the mountains – it is about making informed choices and this will help greatly.”

The SAIS forecast service will launch again in mid-December.