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Avalanche warning issued for
Adirondacks
The state
Department of Environmental Conservation is warning Adirondack
back country visitors to be aware of the danger of avalanches.
Recent snowstorms
have brought a significant amount of new snow to the region, and
that has created conditions conducive to avalanches --
especially on steep, open slopes.
Two skiers
triggered an avalanche on Wright Peak near Lake Placid on
Saturday. Neither was injured, but the incident underscores the
risk of current conditions.
The DEC says the
threat of avalanche typically increases during and immediately
after major snowfalls, as well as during thaws.
Back country
skiers and climbers should know avalanche rescue techniques,
carry safety equipment including a transceiver and shovel, and
never travel alone.
-The Associated
Press, 3-3-10
Hunters kill a near-record number
of bears
Hunters killed a
near-record number of bears in 2009, with the harvest second
only to that of 2003.
The Department of
Environmental Conservation says that statewide, hunters took
1,487 black bears in 2009. That's a 15 percent increase from the
1,295 taken in 2008.
Officials say the
2009 increase is principally due to a strong surge in bear
harvest in the Adirondack region, where the 814 bears taken in
2009 was a 40 percent increase over 2008.
In 2003, a record
1,864 bears were harvested statewide.
-The Associated
Press, 3-3-10
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