WOODLAND HILLS — Residents of this mountainside community have been asked to consider leaving their houses each afternoon — the peak time for the hills to unleash an avalanche.
Avalanches are often triggered when the sun is at its hottest and snow begins to melt.
"During peak times, maybe they would take their families and go get pizza," Utah County Sheriff's Sgt. Darren Gilbert said.
Two avalanches rumbled down the mountainside above the city over the past 10 days and came close to houses. No one was injured.
As conditions such as snowfall, fluctuations in temperature and rapid weather changes continue, so will the danger for avalanches.
Officials from the mayor's office, the Utah County Sheriff's Office and the county's volunteer search and rescue patrol went door-to-door to talk with residents in areas that "are potentially more dangerous than others because of snow," Mayor Toby Harding said.
The remainder of the town's 1,200 residents were notified by a city emergency phone call system, Harding said.
About five houses are considered most vulnerable because they are nestled near an old avalanche chute. A small avalanche came down the chute about 1 1/2 weeks ago, Gilbert said. No buildings were damaged.
The old avalanche chute is east Broad Hollow Canyon, where a 200-yard-wide avalanche came down late Wednesday afternoon. The Broad Hollow Canyon avalanche also did not cause property damage.
City and county officials flew over the Broad Hollow Canyon avalanche Thursday morning, Gilbert said.
"All indications were and currently are (that) there wasn't and isn't any imminent danger. We did notify people of what was going on and we suggested they be careful and watchful," Harding said.
Woodland Hills is in the southern part of Utah County, east of Spanish Fork, and although Harding described it as a mountainside community, "this is the first time that anybody recalls anything like this," he said.
E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com