LIFESAVING SOCIETY WATER SMART FACTS

Spring Ice is Rotten Ice

Spring ice may collapse suddenly and without warning!
Incident Statistics: Each winter in Canada someone dies in an ice-related incident, and countless others fall through the ice and have a close brush with death. Over half of drownings related to snowmobiling occur after dark. Consumption of alcohol or drugs continue to be a contributing factor in snowmobiling related drownings. Ice Rescue Call 911. Be careful, you can fall through the ice too. Anyone on or near the weak ice should slowly lay down. Tell the person to kick and slowly ease their way out of the water. Have them crawl or roll away from the broken ice. Use a long reaching assist, i.e. rope, stick or ladder. Make sure you are both far enough away from the hole before you get close to them. Help them into dry clothes and treat for hypothermia.

Once ice starts to rot, the thickness of ice cannot be used to determine if the ice is safe. The ice may look solid but beware. Because of the way ice melts, the ice will dramatically weaken even as it retains much of its original thickness. Q: How can something that looks so solid become so weak? A: Even thick ice may be weak, especially if it has frozen and thawed repeatedly or if it contains layers of snow or water. When water freezes, minerals in the water make vertical veins in the ice. These veins melt faster than the rest of the ice (called candling); causing vertical channels and the ice to weaken along those channels. What used to support a truck will crumble with the weight of a child.

Q: Will snow on top of ice make it stronger and freeze faster? A: Snow acts like an insulating blanket. The ice under the snow will be thinner and weaker. A new snowfall can also insulate, warm-up and melt existing ice. Consider these factors:
Rotting ice begins to look grey

and splotchy.
Beware; ice can erode from

For more information, contact:

BE ICE SMART
SNOWMOBILES ARE DEAD WEIGHT ON ICE
Ice Safety Tips: Skate on designated ponds. Measure ice thickness in several places. Stay off river ice.

the bottom up, with no obvious warning signs on top. Melting upstream can create run-off that weakens river ice. Ice near shore will melt more quickly. Saline water run-off from roads and melting snow dumps can create hot spots that weaken the ice. Tree stumps, rocks and docks absorb heat from the sun, causing ice around them to melt.

11759 Groat Road, Edmonton, AB T5M 3K6 Tel: 780 415 1755 | Fax: 780 427 9334 experts@lifesaving.org | www.lifesaving.org

Take proper safety equipment. Avoid traveling on ice at night. If you drive on ice, have an

escape plan.
Wear lifejacket over your coat.
June 2008