Ice Conditions Warning Issued for Les Cheneaux Islands Area

Clark Township emergency crews caution people to be careful when traveling over the ice around the Les Cheneaux Islands. Long periods of unseasonably warm weather this winter, coupled with currents around the points, have created unstable ice conditions in places that look safe.

The unseasonably mild weather has weakened ice in some places, Assistant Fire Chief Clark O'Brien said, and the instability of the ice will only increase over the next few weeks.

Mr. O'Brien urged particular caution in areas where currents eat away the ice from below. Les Cheneaux Channel from Musky Bay to the Club Cut, between Marquette Island and the Les Cheneaux Golf Club, Reif's Point at the end of Woodland Park to Government Bay, Middle Entrance between Marquette and LaSalle islands, Islington Point, Snows Channel, Haywood Point, Ailes Point on the south end of LaSalle Island, Brown's Point on the end of Marquette Island in Hessel, and around Government and Coryell islands, and Island Eight are areas where travelers should be most cautious, Mr. O'Brien said.

Other places with poor ice include those covered by melt water, or that have cracks, holes, and dark or soggy ice, an indication that water is close to the surface of the ice.

The ice around Ailes Point across from downtown Cedarville, and a spot across from Islington Road are two places travelers should particularly avoid this spring, he added.

People should never travel on the ice alone, especially when traveling in transition seasons like early spring or late fall, Mr. O'Brien said. If one travels alone and goes through the ice, there may be no one around to see the incident or report it, especially when the ice is poor and fewer people are traveling over it.

Emergency crews could take at least 15 to 20 minutes to arrive after an incident is reported, leaving ample time for hypothermia to set in. Exhaustion overwhelms victims in water colder than 32 degrees within 15 minutes or less, and can cause the person to become unconscious.

He recommended snowmobilers carry a tow rope with a throwable device on the end, and wear ice spuds to pull themselves up in the event of breaking through the ice. Spuds should be at the ends of a rope around one's neck, through the sleeves, and near one's hands.

If one falls through the ice, the best thing to do is kick one's legs to push the body up and over the ice around the hole, using spuds or any other hooked device to pull up onto the ice.

"If you do go down and are able to get out, keep your clothes on and don't strip down unless you have warm, dry clothes to change into, and head to the nearest place to get help," Mr. O'Brien said.

At least one to two people fall through the ice in the Les Cheneaux Islands every year, Mr. O'Brien said.

Ice rescues by the ambulance corps and fire department involve dispatching a snowmobile and rescue sled. The rescue sled allows volunteers to reach victims by pushing the sled over stable ice to the hole where the person went through. The victim will be lifted onto the sled and carried off the ice as volunteers on stable ice or land tow the sled back to safer ground.

In the event Clark Township volunteers cannot perform the rescue, a United States Coast Guard helicopter will be contacted, Mr. O'Brien said.