Before-and-after images show the extent of the ice floe, which put 18 snowmobilers in a perilous spot
Published Feb. 7, 2022 12:43 PM EST | Updated Feb. 8, 2022 9:24 AM EST
After a sheet of ice in Lake Erie broke off from land near Catawba Island, Ohio, 18 snowmobilers were safely rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard and a good Samaritan on Sunday.
Catawba Island juts out into the middle of Lake Erie and is about a one-hour drive east from Toledo.
Coast Guard members on a helicopter noticed that the ice sheet that the group of nearly 20 people had gathered on was slowly drifting out into the lake and began to rescue the group. Seven people were saved by the crew aboard the helicopter, while four others were grabbed by a Coast Guard airboat and the remaining seven were rescued by a good Samaritan in a personal airboat.
Members of the Coast Guard crew helped to rescue the stranded snowmobilers. (NWS Cleveland)
“There’s no such thing as safe ice, but people can mitigate their risks,” said Lt. J.G. Jeremiah Schiessel, from Coast Guard Sector Detroit. “Always be sure to tell someone where you’re going and when you expect to be back. Great Lakes ice is unpredictable, and conditions can change fast.”
The Coast Guard urges people going out on the ice to prepare by wearing clothes that are appropriate for the water temperature, as well as a life jacket, and to carry objects like icepicks or screwdrivers that can help people break through the ice if they accidentally fall under it.
The 18 snowmobilers were rescued from an ice flow that broke off the shoreline of Lake Erie. (NWS)
Just a day before the impromptu rescue mission, the National Weather Service's Cleveland office took to Twitter to warn people of the dangers of ice drifts, where high winds push sheets of ice offshore and deeper into the lake.
"You are urged to stay off the ice on Lake Erie as there is the possibility that the ice will drift away from shore," the tweet said. "Dangerous ice conditions could develop causing people to become trapped on the ice."
Satellite imagery shared by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows what ice floes look like from the air before and after they break off the shoreline.
The ice clearly fractures from the shoreline, making it impossible to get back to shore without a dip into the dangerously cold water in the lake. According to the National Weather Service, the water temperature of Lake Erie near Toledo is 34 degrees.
Ice coverage on Lake Erie compared to average. This graph shows that ice did not form on the lake until January, but that it rapidly spread across the lake during January. (NOAA)
As of Feb. 6, Lake Erie was about 80% covered in ice, with the lake having above-average ice coverage despite ice not forming on the lake until January. Much of the ice covering the lake is 12 to 28 inches thick, more than thick enough to be considered safe to walk on.
When looking at all the Great Lakes combined, 41.4% of their surface is covered in ice.
According to the National Weather Service, ice should be at least 2 inches thick to walk on and 5 inches thick to snowmobile on. Trucks can drive on frozen ice when it is at least 12 inches thick.
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