Dear Dr Hetland and co-authors,

Thank you for submitting the revised version of your Brief Communication, “Keeping pace with human factors in avalanche decision-making -- an update to the NHESS scoping review (2023-2026)”, to Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences.
Both referees consider the manuscript a useful contribution. Referee Benjamin Zweifel recommends acceptance subject to one minor terminological correction, while Referee Philip A. Ebert acknowledges that the manuscript fulfils its intended purpose as a concise communication informing the community about the update of an important literature resource. The authors’ responses appropriately address the points raised during the discussion.

I have also considered whether the manuscript, given its deliberately concise character and its close connection to the previously published scoping review, provides a sufficient contribution for publication in NHESS. Although the manuscript does not present a fundamentally new analysis, I believe that it is suitable as a Brief Communication. The systematic update of the literature, the openly accessible data and scripts, and the identification of recent developments and persistent research gaps provide a valuable and timely reference for the avalanche research and practitioner communities. In particular, human factors and decision-making represent an important dimension of avalanche risk that merits continued attention in NHESS. The manuscript identifies 35 additional studies and highlights priorities relating to causal research designs, behavioural linkage, and group-level decision-making.

Before the manuscript can be accepted, please implement the technical correction identified by Referee Zweifel. Specifically, the expression “New work” in the abstract should be replaced by a less ambiguous formulation, such as “Recent studies” or “New publications”, as already indicated in your response. Please also carefully proofread the final manuscript and ensure that the terminology, author initials, repository links, and data-availability information are accurate and consistent throughout.

Subject to these technical corrections, the manuscript will be suitable for acceptance in NHESS.

Thank you for choosing NHESS to communicate this useful update to the avalanche science community.

Yours sincerely,
Sven Fuchs
Senior Editor NHESS