The North Bay Fire and Emergency Service is asking people to stay off the ice.
The service says even though the ice may look safe, ice thickness has not developed to a point where we are comfortable having people out on area lakes.
They’re offering the following safety advice:
- Stay away from open bodies of water
- Always supervise children playing outside who may wander or want to play near rivers, ponds, creeks or ditches etc. A child can drown in less than two inches of water.
- Falling into the water at this time of year can lead to hypothermia and death.
- Coldwater temperatures at this time of year can prevent even strong swimmers from escaping once they’ve fallen through the ice.
- If snowmobiling, stay safe on the trails and away from water or thin ice. Over half of drownings related to snowmobiling occur after dark and consumption of alcohol and/or drugs continues to be a contributing factor in snowmobiling related drownings.
