ICE SAFETY WARNING
Don’t Take A Chance With Your Life. Be Aware Of Ever Changing Ice Conditions.
A resident has reported to us about going through the ice last Saturday while shovelling his rink. Fortunately he just went through up to his waist and with him being a Markham firefighter, his ice survival training helped him out of a bad situation.
Please be aware of constantly changing ice conditions on the Lake even in mid-winter but even more so this time of year.
Be Safe and Be Aware of changing ice conditions.
United Soils Management roadside sign
KNOW THE DANGERS OF ICE
Ice Factors
Many factors affect ice thickness including: type of water, location, the time of year and other environmental factors such as:
- Water depth and size of body of water.
- Currents, tides and other moving water.
- Chemicals including salt.
- Fluctuations in water levels.
- Logs, rocks and docks absorbing heat from the sun.
- Changing air temperature.
- Shock waves from vehicles traveling on the ice.
Ice Colour
The colour of ice may be an indication of its strength.
- Clear blue ice is strongest.
- White opaque or snow ice is half as strong as blue ice. Opaque ice is formed by wet snow freezing on the ice.
- Grey ice is unsafe. The grayness indicates the presence of water.
