Scuba divers rescue submerged ice fishing shacks

The recent warm temperatures in Saskatchewan have caused problems for people who have ice fishing shacks on some lakes.

Last week, there were two reports of submerged ice fishing shelters at Buffalo Pound Provincial Park and two more at Thompson Lake.

Conservation officer Rich Hildebrand said with weather that's been warmer than usual this year, structures on the ice can heat up and melt the ice below.

This can lead to ice shacks falling through.

"That could be a pretty costly venture for an individual or an insurance company to try and deal with," Hildebrand said.

Air-filled bags aid in rescue

At Buffalo Pound, near Moose Jaw, Scuba Guys Dive Shop was called in to rescue some of the buildings.   

Owner Curtis Temple said he's had requests to recover three ice shacks and one snowmobile so far this week.

The specialized divers from the shop use air-filled lift bags that displace water and make the object weigh less. The water then pushes the object up to the surface, Temple said.

It's not the first time the team has gone after ice shacks, either. Temple said he's been asked to recover vehicles, airplanes and an air seeder.

"Each time there is a surprise as to what they are, but the surprise gets less and less the more we do it," he said.

According to Temple, the ice at Buffalo Pound is 35 centimetres thick, but he said he still wouldn't call it "safe."
 

We want people to enjoy ice fishing, but we don't want to have any tragedies.- Rich Hildebrand, conservation officer

"There's no way to say that's going to be a guarantee," he said. "You just have to be very careful and drive very slow if you're driving on it, so you don't create waves underneath that are going to put pressure on the ice."

Check ice thickness before heading out

Hildebrand said people should always check ice thickness before they head out on it.

There should be at least 10 cm of ice to walk on, 20 cm to drive a snowmobile or ATV on, 30 cm to drive a car or light truck on and more than 30 cm for a heavy truck.

An official from Buffalo Pound said about 20 shacks are still out on the ice, down from 40 at the beginning of the week. There is open water due to springs in the lake.

"If it's not that thick, maybe it's a good idea to take it off at the end of each day," Hildrebrand said. "We don't want to see any more fall through.

"We want people to enjoy ice fishing, but we don't want to have any tragedies."