This is a bit scary

Danger of avalanches in Bulgaria’s mountains at its highest

The highest level of danger of avalanches was declared on March 13, Bulgaria’s Mountain Rescue Service said, quoted by local media.

Although conditions at Bansko ski resort were good, the situation in the mountains remains complicated because of thick snow.

The Mountain Rescue Service called on skiers and snowboarders to stay within the guarded ski slopes because of the instability of the snow, especially on steep slopes. Because of a high risk of avalanches, slopes and facilities at Todorka had been closed on March 12, reports said.

There have been two major avalanches on the Pirin mountain in the past week. In one, on March 8, three people who were skiing died, while in a separate incident a few days later, a snowboarder was injured near Todorka peak.

The head of the Bulgarian Red Cross, Hristo Grigorov, was quoted as saying that, “alcohol and drugs cause ‘extremists’ to feel immortal”. He said that it was the snowboarder who had caused the March 11 avalanche.

Grigorov said that it was extremely irresponsible, given all the warnings, to venture into potentially dangerous areas, adding that those who did so also put at risk the lives of those who went to rescue them.

He repeated calls not to ski or snowboard in areas where there were signs warning of avalanche danger, currently at its highest level for the three-metre-deep snow.