Various responsibility

On avalanches

Below is listed some of the various responsibility of IMO with regard to avalanches:

• Hazard zoning has been carried out for most or all towns and villages in relevant areas in the north, west and east (see map below), as well as local hazard zoning for some individual farms or recreation areas.
• Evacuation maps for those towns, as well as evacuation plans in collaboration with the Civil Protection Department of the National Commissioner of the Icelandic Police and the local Civil Protection Committees.
• An advisory role regarding avalanche protective measures. IMO also carries out research and field experiments with various types of such measures. A report has been written about the need for avalanche protection in Iceland and several resports have been written about avalanche protective measures for Icelandic conditions.
• Daily surveys of the snow pack in the vicinity of densely populated areas where avalanche risks are imminent.
• Warnings are issued of avalanche hazards and decisions are made about evacuating houses in cooperation with the locals.
• Chronicles of snow avalanches have been written for each of the monitored towns and a few rural areas.
• Landslides are being registrated and researched in co-operation with the Icelandic Institute of Natural History.
• A map on a selected front page shows recent observations of avalanches.
• An avalanche map viewer is available, easing user access to avalanche and landslide data.