More than 100 fishermen rescued from chunk of ice in Minnesota
More than 100 fishermen have been rescued from a large chunk of ice in a Minnesota lake.
The anglers were stuck on the water in upper Red Lake on Friday afternoon – more than 30ft from the shore.
Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office said before emergency services arrived at the scene, four bystanders who staged a rescue attempt aboard a canoe fell into the water.
Assisted by fire and rescue personnel and other officials, police took about an hour to get all of the stranded 122 fishermen back to shore.
No injuries were reported, including those who fell from the canoe.
The incident is at least the fifth rescue on the lake this month, according to local media.
Red Lake is the largest inland lake in Minnesota, measuring 451 square miles.
Local officials have warned people about venturing out on to the ice due to recent rain, wind, and unseasonably warm winter temperatures, which have left it more fragile than usual.
“Check your surroundings, you may not know you are on the ice floe,” the county sheriff’s office said.
Anyone who attempts to evacuate should do so slowly to avoid falling into the water, it added, and people on ice which they think is too thin to safely flee from should call emergency services.