Fort Simpson (Dec 04/06) - Rescue workers retrieved the body of a Fort Simpson man on Nov. 29, a day after he fell through the ice beside the Liard River crossing.

James (Jimmy) Alfred Isiah, 68, was using a snowcat to widen the east lane of the ice crossing on the afternoon of Nov. 28 when his equipment sank through a soft spot on the ice beside the main driving route on the crossing.

Members of the Fort Simpson volunteer fire department and the RCMP drilled holes in the ice near the location where the snowcat sank to search for the body, said Sgt. Cliff McKay.

A rescue worker saw the orange floater suit Isiah had been wearing, McKay said. Workers latched onto the suit and attached a rope so the body didn't move while they cut through the ice to retrieve it.

"It was very fortunate he was discovered," McKay said.

Local emergency services were contacted about the accident on Nov. 28 by workers in the area.

Workers had seen Isiah operating the snowcat on the crossing and a short time later realized the equipment was no longer visible. When they checked the area they found a soft spot in the ice.

Isiah was a long-term employee of Rowe's Construction, the company that had the contract to build the ice crossing.

The Fort Simpson RCMP received the call about the accident between 3:30 and 4:00 p.m., said McKay.

No rescue was attempted because a length of time had already passed and Isiah hadn't surfaced, he said.

"We knew the equipment was in about 20 feet of water," he said.

A dive team had been contacted and were expected to arrive on Wednesday afternoon. They were called off after the body was recovered.

The Department of Transportation is assuring people about the safety of the crossing.

"We have no issues with the safety of the ice road," said Bob Kelly, a spokesperson for the department.

Kelly said the snowcat crashed through the ice adjacent to but not on the road.

The ice crossing on Highway 1 was originally open to cars and light vehicles weighing up to 3,000 kg on Nov. 24. On the morning of the accident the weight allowance had been increased to 10,000 kg. It was decreased again following the accident.

On Wednesday the crossing was open to one lane of traffic. Staff were controlling the crossing from both ends to assure people and keep traffic on one lane," Kelly said.

There have been no accidents like this one on ice crossings under the jurisdiction of the department, Kelly said.

"It's a tragedy for everyone concerned," he said.

This is the third death on an ice road in the past six years.

In December, 2000 the snowcat Guyle Armstrong was using to clear a private ice road near Tibbitt Lake broke through the ice. In December, 2004 Gary Robinson died when his plowtruck went through the ice on Prosperous Lake 15 km from Yellowknife.

Both the Coroner's Office and the Worker's Compensation Board are investigating the most recent accident.

Rowes Construction couldn't be reached for comment.