Drones that pack a punch: Remote avalanche control arrives in Whistler

Avalanche control can be a risky enterprise—but Whistler Blackcomb now has new technology helping to keep people out of harm’s way.

A Squamish, B.C., company has finished jumping through a series of regulatory hurdles allowing staff to load up drones with explosives for a variety of functions—including avalanche control at ski resorts.

Believed to be a first in Canada, Alpine Solutions carried out controlled avalanche triggering in Whistler Blackcomb, documented by high-definition cameras.

“It’s got its use case, but other methods also do—so in certain cases this is going to be the go-to, in others (alternative) methods are actually going to be more applicable,” said Alexis Tessier, an avalanche expert and the company’s operation manager. “I’s very much a case of ‘OK, we got a new tool to do a job with.’”

• Related: New drone regulations from Transport Canada go into effect today

The company uses hardware from an American company, Drone Amplified, customized to do the specialized work of delivering explosives to very specific locations. They needed a slew of approvals from Transport Canada, to WorkSafeBC, to drone operator licensing to operate the unusual service.

“We’re going to be taking it to commercial clients (including) railways, industry, mining—these are all potential customers,” said Tessier.

Drones are becoming increasingly common as tools for a variety of purposes. They’ve been used to pressure wash the upper levels of public buildings like Vancouver’s city hall and the Vancouver Maritime Museum, while also becoming a standard option to survey and document landslides and other search-and-rescue scenarios.

• Related: Heat-seeking drone used in search-and-rescue mission a B.C. first

Island Health is also carrying out trial runs examining the feasibility of delivering medications and picking up medical tests in remote communities, while Vancouver police have expanded their fleet to nearly two dozen unmanned aerial vehicles that they use several times a day as part of their routine operations.