Dozens Rescued after being Trapped on Lake Erie Ice Floe

MARBLEHEAD, Ohio (AP) — A sheet of ice holding fishermen on Lake Erie broke loose in windy weather Saturday morning, sending many of them scrambling to safety but leaving nearly four dozen stranded on the floe for three hours more than a mile offshore until emergency crews could rescue them. About 100 of 146 fishermen out on the ice were able to grab their gear and make it back to shore before any additional ice broke off, The Blade of Toledo reported. One of the stranded fishermen, 42-year-old Tony Adkins, said the ice began to crack quickly and soon there was a huge gap between the ice floe and the shore. "Thank God the Coast Guard was here for us," Adkins, of Akron, Ohio, told The Blade . "You live and you learn, I guess." The Coast Guard and the Ottawa County Sheriff's Office began receiving reports around 8:30 a.m. Saturday that a large number of people had become stuck on a floe broken off from the main ice pack connected to Catawba Island. The Coast Guard launched helicopters out of Detroit, and along with local rescue personnel, sent airboats to retrieve the stranded fishermen, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Brian McCrum. Forty-six people were rescued, he said, including two fishermen who were hoisted by helicopter and medically examined. It ended up that no one was injured, authorities said. James Gibelyou said he was too far from shore to make a run for it as he and others painfully watched the ice break. "We were out about a mile and a ha...
Source: JEMS Operations - Category: Emergency Medicine Tags: Rescue & Vehicle Extrication News Operations Source Type: news