Anglers rescued from Lake Erie ice floe

Catawba Island, Ohio — A group of more than 20 ice fishermen were rescued from an ice floe that broke off in Lake Erie on Jan. 22.

According to the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Detroit, said the ice floe was about a half mile offshore of Ohio’s Catawba Island State Park. The incident was reported just before 10:30 a.m.

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Local authorities, along with a Coast Guard helicopter and two airboats, were dispatched to the scene to rescue the anglers from the floe.

An ice floe, according to the Coast Guard, is a floating sheet of ice that has broken off from a larger ice formation. These can be unpredictable and dangerous, especially in areas subject to winds or currents, leading to drift into open waters.

By 12:41 p.m. on Jan. 22, all individuals were reported safely back on the mainland, the Coast Guard reported.