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Ice unsafe

Dorothy Westerman
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Jan 06/06) - Yellowknife's deputy fire chief has issued a warning to outdoor enthusiasts keen on enjoying the warmer than usual temperatures.

"Stay off rivers and areas of moving water," Chucker Dewar said early this week as the North Slave basked in record-setting high temperatures.

NNSL Photo/graphic

Here's a look of the Yellowknife River, photographed Jan. 4, looking north from the Ingraham Trail bridge. Note the former snowmobile tracks. - Chris Woodall/NNSL photo

Recommended ice thickness:

  • 10 cm (4 in.) of clear ice: minimum thickness for walking;
  • 15cm (6 in.): minimum for snowmobiles, ATVs;
  • 20-30cm (8-12 in.): minimum for cars and small trucks;
  • 30-38cm (12-15 in.): minimum for light-duty trucks.


  • His warning came after an unusually warm December.

    "With the situations that are transpiring, we ask people to use extreme caution when travelling on lakes."

    The fire department will never say ice thickness on lakes is adequate because of so many variable conditions, Dewar said.

    "There can be weak ice conditions anywhere."

    Dave Abernethy, a member of the Great Slave Snowmobile Association, said while temperatures may be ideal for snowmobilers, extreme caution must be exercised.

    Abernethy also said the Yellowknife River is one area to avoid completely.

    "And the overflow is hard to predict. It's commonly found in smaller bays with a lot of snow cover," Abernethy said.

    Dewar added that while existing thick lake ice should remain somewhat stable in below zero conditions, moving water now exists in rivers.

    "In the Yellowknife River, moving water is deteriorating the ice and the river is almost wide open again," Dewar said of the unsafe conditions.

    "We need some significant cold temperatures to freeze what's not frozen right now."

    In lakes where ice did not have adequate freezing time to form, open areas also exist where in previous years they have been frozen, he said.

    "We're seeing open water conditions on lakes and we are getting reports of significant overflow. And with the warm temperatures, the overflow is getting worse."

    Should temperatures rise above zero and rain occurs, the ice would begin deteriorating.

    Dewar said he has seen from 12 inches overflow up to four feet deep on various lakes.

    Water run-off from hills is also occurring and adding to the overflow conditions, he noted.

    Dewar said because it is warmer, more people are venturing outside.

    "We ask people to use extreme caution."