Experts to review public messages on avalanche risk

Two men put themselves at risk at the scene of an avalanche on Creag Meagaidh

A panel of international experts are to examine how to better educate the public about the hazard avalanches pose in Scotland.

This year, two men were criticised for visiting the scene of an avalanche while one was dressed in shorts and deck shoes and the other in jeans.

The Snow and Avalanche Foundation of Scotland will bring together the experts at a seminar in Edinburgh.

They will include a creative director in advertising.

Avalanche information specialists from Scotland, Canada and Switzerland will also give presentations at the two-day event, which starts on Saturday.

Avalanche debris in Southern Cairngorms

Among the subjects to be discussed will be the Sportscotland Avalanche Information Service's (SAIS) Be Avalanche Aware initiative. The public information project was started in 2013.

Those attending the seminar will look at how people use the information and how it might be developed.

The avalanche specialists will also give insights into how layers of snow, known as snow packs, create the potential for snow slides.

Avalanche debris in the Scottish Highlands earlier this year

Mark Diggins, of SAIS, said: "A range of presentations from a variety of experts, including a creative director in advertising and behavioural research information from the Met Office, will enable us to explore why and who engages with adventure activities and how we behave and take on messages.

"Presentations by avalanche specialists from Canada, Switzerland and Scotland will illustrate not only the various snow packs and how they differ but also what approaches are used to inform the public about hazard and what may be the best approach for educating and getting important messages across."

Mr Diggins added: "We consider that the discussions and presentations on avalanche hazard could also be applied to winter environments outside of Scotland, and knowing how people react and behave in benign and hazardous environments will be very interesting, and may provide us with an opportunity to look anew at how we educate and inform in general."

The two men who were criticised earlier this year had stopped to look at the debris on Creag Meagaidh while there was a potential risk of a further snow slide.

In February on the same Munro, an avalanche of a scale big enough to bury a car was recorded.

SAIS provides avalanche hazard information reports covering hills in the Cairngorms, Glen Coe, Lochaber and Torridon for walkers, climbers and skiers between December and April.