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Avalanches can strike without warning, often releasing upwards of one million tonnes of snow in a matter of seconds and destroying everything in their path. 

Ninety-nine percent of avalanches are triggered by human error and 75 per cent of human victims are fatalities. Compared to the vast store of information we have about earthquakes, scientific understanding of avalanches is fairly limited. In this film, Equinox looks at some new advances designed to protect those on the slopes – including a skier’s ‘airbag’ that is undergoing field trials and an advance warning system. Sequences caught on film include a house being levelled, skiers causing and being caught in avalanches, and unique footage of a ‘wet’ avalanche that all but destroyed the small town of Odda, Norway.  

Programme Information

  • Genre: Factual

  • Subgenre: Science

  • Producers: PIONEER PRODUCTIONS LTD

  • Broadcaster: n/a

  • Duration: 1 x 52'

  • Tags: Science Disaster Male

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