I heard about that.  It isn't news I expect to hear out of Aus, to be honest.  How much BC is there to do?

Looks like a pretty typical cornice fall trigger.  There is no safe way to take a look over the edge of a cornice and no good reason to walk on the edge of one either.  Though often you aren't aware of the amount of overhang.  He's not the only one to make that mistake, I'm sure plenty of us have done it. 

The slope itself as pictured seems utterly unremarkable aside from the fact that it clearly gets loaded and has an overhanging cornice above a +35 degree incline. Add a trigger to that and it will slide more often than it wont the day following a windy snow event.  Australia or anywhere else, the same rules apply.  I'm guessing the prior lack of incidents has more to do with the infrequent snowfall in Oz along with very few BC skiers to provide the triggers.

Pic from smh.com.au

Pity they were not equipped to be where they were - kind of unforgivable for experienced skiers in this age of bc popularity.  Pity he he died.  Hope his brother pulls through the pain ok.

I didn't think so either but when you run a google search on "ski touring Australia" you get a decent amount back. From what i can gather it's almost all cross-country and almost no alpine. I'm drawn to the photos of Mt Feathertop but from what i can gather it's a real fukker to get there (i.e. you have to walk for several days thru the national park in Victorian high country before you even get to the snow line! - no fukking clue what you'd do back there in an emergency). To be honest, i left my splitboard in Haks as i had zero plans to ride BC this SH winter. Brought my snowshoes here, but it sounds like a real fukking mission to get there when i've got the sickest mtb in my backyard.

Feathertop

Pussy. ;-)  Feather top looks like its worth the effort.

It kind of looks worth it just to say you did it... Tell you what, when I am there, let's call in sick and hit Feathertop!

ok.  it'll probably take a week.  we're gonna have to report one hell of a herpes flare-up.

aaah, a little too much roppongi