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OP PALACI

OP PALACI: “Artillery on the Mountain” Tackles Avalanche Hazard

The winter of 2008/2009 marked one of the worst seasons on recent record for avalanches in Western Canada. According to the Canadian Avalanche Centre, 19 fatalities occurred in B.C., involving almost twice as many skiers and snowmobilers as the previous year.

There were however no injuries or fatalities in Rogers Pass, where the Canadian Forces (CF) help to provide clear passage for train and automobile traffic using artillery fire on small avalanches before they have a chance to grow larger and endanger the public.

Rogers Pass is a National Historic Site located within Glacier National Park and covering 18 kilometres along the Trans-Canada Highway. In an effort called Operation Palaci (Op Palaci), three teams of fifteen soldiers each using three 105mm Howitzers from 1st Royal Canadian Horse Artillery (RCHA), based in Shilo, Manitoba, deployed in rotations from December 10, 2008 to April 18, 2009.

The CF work in partnership with Parks Canada to implement the Rogers Pass Avalanche Control Program (AVCON). Canada Command, which provides a single point of contact for the CF’s safety emergency management partners, has delegated responsibility for Op Palaci to one of its six regional commands, Joint Task Force (JTF) Pacific.

The “shoots” – directed by Parks Canada officials – were made at distances ranging from three to five kilometres, and troops fired at all of the 134 target avalanche zones at any given time from their fixed positions along 40 kilometres of highway. The shock of the exploding shells triggers an avalanche in a safe and controlled manner.

“Op Palaci is the largest mobile avalanche program in the world,” said Maj Jeff Allen, Joint Task Force Pacific Desk Officer and coordinator with Parks Canada. “This past year, we fired a total of 621 artillery rounds into the snow pack, which is about average in any given season.”

AVCON is an inter-departmental effort that helps save lives and contributes to keeping open the vital road and rail links between the province and the rest of Canada. During the construction of the Trans-Canada Highway and since its opening in 1962, CF has supported Parks Canada in keeping the highway safe.

Good planning is a critical aspect of successful avalanche control operations, which is why Canada Command meets with Parks Canada every autumn to draft contingency plans for AVCON for the upcoming avalanche season.

“We had an initial conference with Parks Canada to coordinate the year’s mission,” said Major Allen. “It is an opportunity to review what capabilities are required in terms of troop deployment, food, and the expected dates to have the troops at the ready to deploy.”

Without the support of the CF and Op Palaci, commercial traffic, recreation vehicles and trains would struggle to get through this extremely dangerous 18-km stretch of highway and rail, and commerce between BC and the rest of the country would be affected. Thanks to the RCHA and the “artillery on the mountain,” Rogers Pass was able to counter the regional trend for disruptive and fatal avalanches in 2008/2009.