A Sunday afternoon avalanche in a backcountry area near Sparwood, B.C. has search and rescue crews combing the region for signs of a missing snowmobiler.

According to Ed Ehrler of Sparwood Search & Rescue, crews were deployed to Corbin, a popular area for backcountry skiing and snowmobiling, following reports of a missing person.

Ehrler says the backcountry snowpack is very unstable. Officials are warning against visits to the area because of the extreme avalanche risk.

The identity of the missing snowmobiler has not been released.