- Beltrami County sheriff’s office said on Friday evening that between 75 and 100 fishermen were trapped on the ice floe, which broke away from the mainland
- They said the open water is too large to bridge, and they are working to get the people back to shore
- Sheriff Jason Riggs on Thursday warned local people that the ice was exceptionally thin this year and unstable: people fell in on Wednesday but lived
Rescuers in Minnesota are racing to get to up 100 fishermen trapped on an ice floe which has broken away and drifted from the shore.
The fishermen were ice-fishing on Friday on Upper Red Lake, 200 miles north east of the North Dakota city of Fargo and 100 miles south of the Canadian border.
Officials said that no one is believed to be in the water, Northern News Now reported, and rescue boats are on the way. It was 30 degrees when the news broke on Friday evening.
On December 17, 35 people had to be rescued from the lake in similar circumstances, and on Thursday, the sheriff of Beltrami County, Jason Riggs, warned people that the ice was unseasonably thin.
‘Most years, the ice would be thick enough by now for vehicles and wheelhouses, and we’d be seeing a steady procession of them heading north,’ he said.
‘But this year isn’t ‘most years,’ and the ice is changing constantly.
‘It’s absolutely vital that anyone who heads out checks the thickness frequently, pays close attention to the weather, and has a plan in case the worst happens and they wind up in the water.’
Ice floes are pictured on Upper Red Lake, in northern Minnesota. A group of ice fishermen were trapped on the ice on Friday evening
The day before, the sheriffs responded to reports of two men falling through the ice on the lake on their ATV.
By the time the first responders got there, the men had reached the shore: they were cold but unharmed.
‘Recent rain and prolonged above freezing temperatures have caused ice conditions to deteriorate,’ the sheriffs wrote on Facebook.
‘There are many ice houses across the region that are falling through the ice that are not able to be removed because recovery teams are reporting the ice is too weak. They are hopeful with colder weather coming up they can safely remove the property.
‘If you choose to go on the ice, check the thickness frequently and know where you are traveling. Check with area resorts prior to going on the ice.’
Rescuers are pictured at work on December 17, when another 35 people were trapped on the ice
At least three groups of fishermen have been rescued from the ice since December 17, the sheriffs wrote on Thursday.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has issued multiple warnings about poor ice conditions statewide, telling the public that the recent combination of wind, rain and warm weather means ‘few, if any, areas of the state have the ice thickness necessary’ for ice fishing.
‘Many of us love to spend the New Year’s holiday with family and friends on the ice,’ said Col. Rodmen Smith, director of the DNR Enforcement Division.
‘But when it comes to ice conditions, the calendar doesn’t matter.’