The Coast Guard was called out to rescue 18 people who were stranded on an ice flow in Lake Erie.
(NBC News) - A Lake Erie ice floe separated from the Ohio shoreline and isolated outdoor enthusiasts atop the frozen feature Sunday afternoon, but rescuers were able to put 18 people on dry land with no injuries, authorities said.
A Detroit-based U.S. Coast Guard helicopter was over the area of Sandusky Island, a township in Ohio, when crew members noticed the floe adrift before 1 p.m., the U.S. Coast Guard said in a statement.
Some of the people on the virtual island were using all-terrain vehicles in an attempt to find a path to land, the Coast Guard said.
The MH-65 Dolphin helicopter overhead swung into action, and seven people were hoisted aboard, the military branch said. At the same time two airboats, one from the Coast Guard's nearby Station Marblehead, and one piloted by a good Samaritan, picked up the others.
The Coast Guard initially estimated 20 people were on the flow, but it declared mission accomplished after the 18 were rescued. The good Samaritan's boat pulled seven from the floe while the Coast Guard's boat received four, the branch said.
Sunny skies followed bitter cold overnight to create the disparity between a solid lake surface and one that increasingly included floes Sunday.
The clear weather might have been unsettling for the ice while at the same time attracting people to the great outdoors. Officials issued warnings Saturday about instability and fluctuating conditions atop Lake Erie.
On Saturday the National Weather Service office that serves Cleveland recommended enjoying the outdoors elsewhere.
“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 NWS tweeted. “Dangerous ice conditions could develop causing people to become trapped on the ice.”
Federal forecasters observed that parts of the lake were warmer than land Saturday. Additionally, wind gusts as high as 25 miles per hour and cracks in the surface Saturday did not bode well for recreation on ice, the weather service said.
In fact, federal forecasters said, the northward drift atop Lake Erie meant ice floes could end up in Canada.
"There's no such thing as safe ice, but people can mitigate their risks," Detroit-based Coast Guard Lt. Jeremiah Schiessel said in the branch's late afternoon statement. "Great Lakes ice is unpredictable, and conditions can change fast."
The sheet of ice broke off while a group of people was using off-highway vehicles, possibly ATVs or snowmobiles, on the frozen lake top, the Coast Guard said in a series of statements on Twitter and via email.
The Coast Guard used the occasion to remind outdoor enthusiasts to dress for the water temperature, not the air temperature, when they're on ice or water, carry a lifejacket, keep reliable communications devices nearby, and tell someone inland where you'll be and when.
This time, none of that would have made a huge difference. But, as the dangers of Great Lakes ice can turn a day of fun into a red alert, rescuers were lucky to have emergency medical services standing by. The aid wasn't needed.
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