Mountain accidents associated with winter northern flows in the Mediterranean Pyrenees

Pascual,; Callado,

doi:10.3369/tethys.2010.7.04

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…Half of these fatalities occurred during a single storm in 1967 (Wilson et al, 1978). In addition, it has been reported that strong winds, snow, and cold temperatures are often associated with mountain deaths in the Pyrenees (Pascual and Callado, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Freezing and Frostbite on Mount Everest: New Insights into Wind Chill and Freezing Times at Extreme Altitude

Moore

Semple

2011

High Altitude Medicine & Biology

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Cold injury is an acknowledged risk factor for those who venture into high altitude regions. There is, however, little quantitative information on this risk that can be used to implement mitigation strategies. Here we provide the first characterization of the risk of cold injury near the summit of Mount Everest. This is accomplished through the application of a meteorological dataset that has been demonstrated to characterize conditions in the region as inputs to new parameterizations of wind chill equivalent temperature (WCT) and facial frostbite time (FFT). Throughout the year, the typical WCT near the summit of Everest is always <-30°C, and the typical FFT is always less than 20 min. During the spring climbing season, WCTs of -50°C and FFTs of 5 min are typical; during severe storms, they approach -60°C and 1 min, respectively; values typically found during the winter. Further, we show that the summit barometric pressure is an excellent predictor of summit WCT and FFT. Our results provide the first quantitative characterization of the risk of cold injury on Mount Everest and also allow for the possibility of using barometric pressure, an easily observed parameter, in real time to characterize this risk and to implement mitigation strategies. The results also provide additional confirmation as to the extreme environment experienced by those attempting to summit Mount Everest and other high mountains.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Freezing and Frostbite on Mount Everest: New Insights into Wind Chill and Freezing Times at Extreme Altitude

Moore

Semple

2011

High Altitude Medicine & Biology

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“…Precipitation is more abundant in NW, because the relief causes orographic rainfall by forcing masses of humid air to rise; when this air rises above the summits, it descends, its temperature increases again, and the air becomes dryer (the Föehm effect). Thus, the mountain barrier creates a division, isolating the different climatic regions [21][22].…”

Section: Description Of the Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental Differences between Two Neighboring Regions of Southern Spain

Huete-Morales¹,

Quesada-Rubio²,

Rosales-Moreno³

et al. 2018

Pol. J. Environ. Stud.

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Significant differences in climate and land use between adjacent or neighbouring areas are relatively common and may have many causes, but geographic factors are especially important [1]. In studying these causes, we must compare the different variables that may interact to produce unique climates and ecosystems. Such variables include latitude, altitude, relief, sunshine, rainfall, humidity, temperature, and proximity to water bodies, and can produce a characteristic landscape. The rural abandonment, associated with demographic and economic changes also produce changes in the soil surface [2]. A natural region is an area bound by criteria of physical geography, mainly those related to relief, but also to climate, hydrography, vegetation, soil, and others [3]. Physical factors allow us to consider the natural region as a homogeneous and individual area. In Spain, the study of natural regions began in the mid-20th century [4]. Orographic regions are determined by

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“…George (1993) identified climatic factors leading to mountain weather hazards and highlighted the need for accurate weather forecasts. Pascual and Callado (2010) reported the association between mountain accidents in the Pyrenees and winter storms for 12 selected accidents with defined accident patterns and concluded that the described weather conditions should be communicated to visitors by suitable forecasts. Ruedl et al (2012) showed the influence of low ambient temperatures and snowfall on knee injuries in female skiers at five Austrian ski areas.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Influence of Weather on Fatal Accidents in Austrian Mountains

Estrella

Menzel

Ankerst

2022

Weather, Climate, and Society

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Projections of warmer global temperatures in fast approaching time horizons warrant planning strategies for reducing impacts on human morbidity and mortality. This study sought to determine whether increases in temperature and other changes in weather indices impacted rates of fatal accidents occurring in the popular mountainous regions of Austria with the purpose of improving mountain prevention and accident mitigation strategies. The study was based on the merging of 3285 fatal outdoor accidents reported by the Austrian Alpine Safety Board for the period 2006 to 2018 with daily meteorological data from 43 nearby climate stations during the same period. Multivariable logistic regression was used to model the odds of one or more fatal accidents per station and day with weather indices as predictors, controlling for weekend effects bringing more visitors to the mountains. Separate prediction models were performed for summer and winter activities, as well as for specific disciplines. Even after adjustment for concomitant effects impacting mountain fatal accidents, the daily weather indices of temperature, relative humidity, global radiation, cloudiness, snow cover and precipitation were statistically significantly associated with fatal accident risk. In particular, a one-degree Celsius increase in temperature was associated with a 13% increase in odds of a mountain biking accident in the summer and a 8% increase in odds of a mountain suicide in the winter. An increase in global radiation by 1 kWh/m2 was associated with a 11% and 28% increase in fatal accident odds for mountaineering in the summer and touring in the winter, respectively.

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Mountain accidents associated with winter northern flows in the Mediterranean Pyrenees

Cited by 3 publications

References 5 publications

Freezing and Frostbite on Mount Everest: New Insights into Wind Chill and Freezing Times at Extreme Altitude

Freezing and Frostbite on Mount Everest: New Insights into Wind Chill and Freezing Times at Extreme Altitude

Environmental Differences between Two Neighboring Regions of Southern Spain

The Influence of Weather on Fatal Accidents in Austrian Mountains

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