Avalanches involve the rapid down-slope movement of snow or ice, sometimes incorporating sediment and rock. Avalanches therefore require a combination of steep slopes (30-50 degrees) and a heavy snowfall. A common trigger for avalanches is the deposition of wet snow over ice or a hard crust, with failure occurring along the contact.
The following is a list of documented avalanches (bold text indicates fatal incident):
- Baccalieu Island, May 2, 1912
- Bay de Verde, January 2, 1959
- Betts Cove, January 26, 1884
- Betts Cove, February 9, 1877
- Blanc Sablon, South shore of Quebec, March 10, 1995
- Blue Mountains, Northern Peninsula, March 10, 2007
- Bluff Head Brook, Chromite Mine, January 23, 1895
- Burgeo, 1910
- Capstan Island, Labrador, February 27/28, 2004
- Corner Brook, Curling Road, March 4, 1935
- Corner Brook, Quarry Hill, February 4, 1938
- Curling, February 7, 1986
- Distress Cove, Placentia Bay, March 12, 1863
- Fogo, Fogo Island, March 13, 2008
- Foote’s Cove, Burin Peninsula, March 12, 1907
- Griquet, February 6, 1962
- Ireland’s Bight, Northern Peninsula, January 20, 1891
- Labrador, February, 1933
- Labrador City, January 15, 1985
- Lewis Hills, March 10, 2006
- Lewis Hills, March 14, 2009
- Lewis Hills, March 22, 2009
- Lewis Hills, March 30, 2011
- Murdering Corner, near Cartwright, 1893
- Nain, Winter, 1781/82
- Nain, January, 2003
- Nain, February 7, 2004
- Okak, March 1, 1935
- Petty Harbour, February 17, 1921
- Port Aux Basques, March 14, 1997
- Rencontre West, January, 1959
- Seal Island (Shellbird Island?), Humber River, December 31, 1917
- Smokey Mountain, Labrador City, January 25, 2011
- St. Anthony, January 26, 2004
- St. John’s, Battery, February 7, 1921
- St. John’s, Battery, February 16, 1959
- St. John’s, Lower Battery, March 13, 1960
- St. John’s, Lower Battery, February, 2007
- St. John’s, Signal Hill, February 17, 1921
- St. John’s, 1987
- Tilt Cove, 1987
- Tilt Cove, March 11, 1912
- Trinity, January 6, 1873
- Woody Point – Curzon Village, 1876
- York Harbour, February 13, 1905
For more information on avalanches we recommend the following external web sites: