New Hampshire’s higher summits will experience dangerously cold temperatures and have a considerable threat of avalanches throughout the day Tuesday and into Wednesday.
The Mount Washington Observatory has issued a wind chill warning that is in effect from 8 p.m. Monday night through 9 a.m. Wednesday morning. A wind chill advisory will then be in effect through 5 p.m. Wednesday.
A low pressure system moving through southern Quebec will swing a cold front through the Mount Washington area beginning Monday evening, bringing well below normal temperatures through Wednesday morning—even by Mount Washington standards.
According to the observatory’s forecast, strong winds will combine with the frigid temperatures to create even more dangerous conditions. Hurricane-force winds are expected, with gusts possibly approaching triple digits both Monday and Tuesday night, creating dangerously cold wind chills.
Officials said hypothermia and frostbite could develop on exposed skin in under 5 minutes.
In addition to the cold, windy conditions, the Mount Washington Avalanche Center is forecasting avalanche conditions as “considerable” above 3,000 feet on Tuesday.
Officials with the avalanche center said very cold temperatures could keep the deeper weak layer of snow from effectively bonding together with the hard crust. As winds increase significantly Monday night and allow for additional snow transport and slab formation, new slabs could continue to add stress to the buried weak layer in the snowpack and avalanche danger could be elevated by the morning hours.
