The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) currently uses World War Two Howitzer artillery guns to knock snow off mountainsides in an effort to prevent avalanches. The massive guns are an easy way to blow away a large amount of snow from range without having to remove it manually, and as such became an annual part of the snow clearing process. The specific mountains cleared are those that sit above highways and the guns have been used since the 1950s.

 

Though the agency's winter operation manager, Jamie Yount, respects the history of the guns, it is likely they will soon be phased out in favor of automated systems. Yount said, "These are really pretty amazing weapons. They were built in a machine shop, basically built by hand, in World War II. And if they could tell a story, I'm sure it'd be a good one." CDOT has already installed 30 automated snow clearing systems and will likely install many more, eventually making the artillery system obsolete.

https://www.cpr.org/2022/10/13/cdot-avalanche-howitzer-shells/