WATCH: Two hikers rescued after floating away on large sheet of broken ice
Posted February 22, 2021 9:58 pm.
Last Updated February 22, 2021 10:34 pm.
Two hikers have been rescued by an OPP helicopter after a large sheet of ice broke away from the Georgian Bay shoreline — leaving them stranded nearly three kilometres from land.
OPP made the daring ice rescue near Tobermory on Sunday afternoon, after a resident saw the hikers drifting away and called 911.
“Hi there, it’s OPP calling,” you can hear in the video, “we have some people in Georgian Bay that are stuck out on a piece of ice, it has come apart from the shore and they are floating away.”
A police helicopter hovered from above and eventually swooped down to rescue, and returned the two people safely to shore.
“We’re just here at the grotto and there are some people out on the ice. I guess they walked out there and now there’s a huge separation of water between them and the mainland, and they need help. They better hurry like this is getting wider and wider as we speak,” you can hear in the 911 audio.
Police are reminding everyone to avoid unnecessary risks on the ice and near shorelines given this winter’s somewhat milder temperatures.
Members of @RCAF_ARC 424Sqn and @OPP combined to rescue two persons stranded on ice near Tobermory on Sunday on Georgian Bay. Bring whistle, radio (or cellphone), and wear #lifejacket when on lake ice. #GreatLakesWinterSafety pic.twitter.com/g3GE9rJm3a
— Trenton JRCC CCCOS (@JRCCTrentCCCOS) February 22, 2021
