UPDATE 3:30 p.m.- Two American brothers have been identified as the victims of Monday’s avalanche near Revelstoke.

Jonathan Kinsley, an executive of Kinsley Enterprises, and his brother, Timothy, president of Kinsley Properties, were identified in a social media post by their family.

“Our entire Kinsley family is still processing this heartbreaking news of their deaths and respectfully ask for privacy at this time,” the statement said.

“We know their presence as dedicated leaders in our organization and the community will be immensely missed by many and we are grateful for your love, understanding and prayers as our entire Kinsley family manages this loss.”

The B.C. government is urging people to be prepared and extremely cautious in the backcountry, with continued high and considerable avalanche risk forecast in many areas of the province.

“Avalanche Canada continues to forecast dangerous snowpack and we’re urging everyone to exercise heightened levels of caution and vigilance in the backcountry this season,” Bowinn Ma, Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness, said, in a statement.

“This year’s snowpack is being compared to 2003, which was one of the worst years for avalanche fatalities.”

Avalanche Canada is expecting these conditions to last the remainder of the winter season in some areas.

“This is a highly unusual and unpredictable snowpack. The complication with this snowpack setup is that the layers are deep enough that we are less likely to see clues of instability, like nearby avalanche activity, ‘whumpfing’ or cracking snow,” said Ryan Buhler, a forecast supervisor with Avalanche Canada said.

“However, despite the lack of obvious clues, there is serious potential for large, human-triggered avalanches. We urge backcountry users to exercise caution and make conservative, low-consequence choices if they decide to travel in avalanche terrain.

Buhler is urging all backcountry users to check the forecast here, to carry a transceiver, probe and shovel, and be trained to use it when needed.

ORIGINAL – Two people are dead after an avalanche near Revelstoke yesterday, taking the total number of fatalities this month to five.

Heli-skiing operator CMH Nomads says two guests and a guide were caught in an avalanche around Monday afternoon.

In a statement, President Rob Rohn says the guests were unresponsive when they were pulled from the snow, noting they were flown to Kelowna General Hospital where they were pronounced dead.

“Three individuals were caught in the slide with two fully buried and one partially buried. The individuals were located by their transceivers and extracted from the snow,” he said.

“The thousands of guests who ski with us each winter are our family. It is impossible to put into words the sorrow that we feel and the sadness that is shared by our guests, their families and all of our staff.”

Rohn says the guide is in a stable condition at Kelowna General Hospital.

Mounties in Revelstoke say they are continuing to assist the BC Coroners Service in the investigation.

“Immediate action was taken on scene by all involved to locate the victims, provide first aid and transport by helicopter to hospital,” Revelstoke RCMP Sgt. Chris Dodds said, in a news release.

“Ultimately, the efforts to save the lives of the two skiers were unsuccessful. The third skier involved remains at hospital in serious condition.”

Meanwhile, B.C. Emergency Health Services says it was called Monday afternoon following a separate slide near Cherryville east of Lumby. One person was taken to hospital with unknown injuries.

Monday’s avalanches come two days after a man was killed near Valemount, and two weeks after two off duty Nelson police officers were killed near Kaslo.

– With files from The Canadian Press