Pyrenees ski resort uses helicopter to shift 50 tonnes of snow downhill in bid to keep slopes open after exceptionally mild weather left runs bare
- Unseasonal rise in temperatures of 50F saw snow melt on the resort’s slopes
- Luchon-Superbagnères in France needs the Jan-Feb peak season to survive
- The council arranged for snow to be moved to the lower slopes for £4,000
A ski lodge in the Pyrenees has used a helicopter to shift 50 tonnes of snow downhill in an attempt to keep slopes open after an exceptionally mild winter left their runs bare.
A temperature rise of 50F this week left the slopes of the Luchon-Superbagnères resort in the Pyrenees without any snow for its guests to ski on.
The local council arranged for snow to be lugged from higher mountains to the runs by helicopter, at a cost of just over £4,000.
Two men help an helicopter carrying snow in order to place it on a ski slope in the Superbagneres station, near Luchon, in French Pyrenees mountain southwestern France, on Saturday
People look as the helicopter delivers its load of snow on the Superbagneres station, near Luchon, in French Pyrenees mountain southwestern France on Saturday
Unseasonal low temperatures in the Pyrenees this week have caused the resort to require snow to be transported from higher mountains to their lower slopes (pictured)
On Friday and Saturday, the snow was laid at its new home on the children and beginner slopes.
‘We’re not going to cover the entire ski station in snow, but without it we would have had to close a huge part of the ski domain, and it’s during the holidays that we have the most activity for beginners and the ski schools,’ Hervé Pounau, director of the local council, told local media.
Mr Pounau added the move was designed to ensure jobs of up to 80 workers were protected during the peak season of February and March.
Pictured: A locator map of the Luchon Superbagneres resort in the French Pyrenees
The mountains of the Pyrenees resort have been left almost bare from the unseasonal high temperatures
Pictured is the French Pyrenees resort in snowy season
Environmental activists voiced concerns over the snow transportation, claiming that the helicopter journey would not be an adaptation to global warming, but would release harmful emissions and cost a lot of energy.
Mr Pounau said they had no choice in the decision, admitting that it wasn’t very environmentally conscious.
Unusually high temperatures across France, which have been linked to global warming, are causing concern over the future of the country’s skiing industry.