Avalanche snow app ready for smartphones

A Boulder company has developed a free app for smartphones to provide avalanche-safety tools that can help save the lives of hikers and skiers in Colorado’s backcountry.

Boulder’s Backcountry Access co-founder Bruce Edgerly says he regularly interviews avalanche survivors to help develop more efficient safety tools.

According to the Denver Post, the company has been credited with saving lives with its digital Tracker avalanche beacon. The company’s Float backpacks have saved lives with air bags that inflate and carry skiers trapped in a mountainside of moving snow.