On New’s Year Day a local resort on Lake of the Woods in Northern Minnesota was a lot busier than usual when a pressure ridge of ice on the lake forced a section of ice loose and stranded nearly 50 anglers on the floating ice island. The resort used boats and UTVs to get the people safely back to shore. The boats brought the people to the far south edge of the pressure ridge where snowmobiles and Utility vehicles were able to get the anglers back to dry land.
The Lake of the Woods Sheriff Office responded to a call around 3 pm Monday, Jan. 1, 2024 of several anglers being stranded on a broken away section of ice on lake of the woods. The record warm temperatures have been keeping Minnesota rescue personnel as folks continue to venture out on ice that is not to safe levels yet due to the abnormal warmth this winter.
Minnesota’s Department of Natural Resources continues to warn anglers to adhere to ice safety protocols to avoid issues like this that seem to keep rescue personnel on steady call and have already led to a few deaths in the north.
