GREENSBURG — As temperatures warm, the ice on ponds and rivers across Indiana will begin melting, and firefighters are urging everyone to stay off the ice.
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"Ice can be deceiving, even to the most experienced people," said Walker Gabbard, a firefighter with the Greensburg Fire Department.
The department practices ice rescues a few times each winter, based on ice availability.
The first practice usually happens when ice first forms, when it is very solid.
"We try to come back in maybe a week or two, when it starts to deteriorate a little bit," Gabbard continued. "Kind of creates more realistic training."
Firefighters take turns putting on insulated suits to protect from the icy, cold water. This person gets in the water, and the rest of the team runs through the drill of getting them out of the water.
There are a variety of techniques and equipment used.
Most rescues involve using a rescue sled, which floats over the ice until reaching the person in the water. Once the firefighter pulls the victim onto the sled, the rest of the team, on the bank nearby, pulls them back to shore.
There are some special cases when the sled may not be used, when a rope or a flotation device are hooked around the person in the water to pull them out.
Fire Chief Nathan Stoermer kept a close eye on his team through the drills.
"We would utilize this if we're rescuing a dog or an animal potentially that has fallen through the ice that can't lay on the sled," Chief Stoermer explained.
Chief went on to explain that so far this winter, Greensburg has only had to perform one real ice rescue.
"Luckily, we don't see a lot of these rescues every year," Chief Stoermer said.
When they do get the call, it can be emotional.
"Somebody's having the worst day of their life, and they're calling on us to come save them," Gabbard shared. "It's simultaneously the best feeling in the world, and probably the most worrisome."
"We want to be ready for them, but we would rather preach prevention and try to keep people off the ice," Chief Stoermer noted.
The team said that in Greensburg, fishers and hunters go out on the ice a lot.
"Something could always happen," Gabbard reminded these groups. "No ice is 100% safe."
The ice has started to change since initially forming.
"As it warms up, as we get more surface heating, as we have more sunny days, that's going to pretty much exclude you from getting out on that ice," Chief Stoermer said.
Chief Stoermer pulled a sample of ice from the pond where training was taking place. The ice is made up of multiple layers.
"This is clear. This is the ice that's sturdy," Chief Stoermer explained.
Underneath the clear layer was a cloudier layer of ice.
"This is dangerous ice. It can crush, fall through," said Chief Stoermer.
It can be difficult to tell what the layers of ice look like from the surface. It can also be difficult to tell the ice depth.
"What could be four inches thick in one area, because of wind or snowpack, might only be one or two inches thick in another area," Chief continued.
The bottom line is, if you're considering getting on the ice:
"Ice is not safe," said Chief Stoermer. "We don't play on the ice. We don't want to sled out onto the ice."
If an accident does happen, this latest round of ice rescue training will be fresh in the team's mind.
"We will be prepared," concluded Chief Stoermer.
