Cool to look at…a sight to behold…but when you plunge through you’ll be dangerously cold! Van Buren County Sheriff Daniel Abbott is joining emergency preparedness colleagues all across the region this weekend in cautioning everyone tempted to take to the ice on lakes, rivers and ponds to use common sense and avoid a potentially fatal disaster by staying off of unsafe ice.
Abbott has issued a caution to residents and visitors alike in Michigan’s Great Southwest to stay safe as the frozen ice season gets underway in earnest on local lakes and streams. Abbott notes that ice should be at least five inches thick to hold the weight of an average person and eight or more inches thick to sustain the weight of a snowmobile or all terrain vehicle.
Abbott also notes that there are also out on the market now very low-profile flotation vests you can wear under or over your coats when you venture out onto the ice for safety reasons.
Should you find yourself on thin ice, remembering the following tips could save your life:
- If you hear the ice crack, have your group spread out. Everyone should immediately lie down to distribute the weight on the ice more evenly, then crawl on your belly to safer ice.
- If someone falls through the ice, do not run to the hole. Instead, call 911 and then use a pole, branch, rope, or other long object to try to reach the victim. Pushing a small row boat while still holding on is the safest way.
- If you fall through the ice, stay calm. Call out for help and kick your feet while getting hands and arms up onto the safer ice. Ice picks or screwdrivers can help you get a grip on the ice. Continue to swim up onto the ice until you can crawl or roll out onto the ice to safety.
- Pets that go out on the ice are a major cause for many near-drownings and deaths. If your pet has wandered onto dangerous ice, do not follow them. Stay where you are and coax them back to safety.
Abbott tells us, “The biggest danger is hypothermia. If you fall through the ice and manage to climb out you need to seek medical assistance quickly.” He also recommends that all wet clothing be replaced immediately with warm, dry blankets, towels or clothing.
Finally, Sheriff Abbott says, “Almost every year, our office gets called out for an ice rescue due to poor ice conditions, hopefully this year we don’t run into that, but if we do, our Dive Team is ready.”
Great advice for ice conditions anywhere in the region. Make sure everyone in your party is aware of the safety rules, too and you’ll stand to enjoy a considerably better day communing with nature than if disaster strikes.
