Word to your mother, ice-ice safety

 

While the temperatures are rising, frozen waters in Lethbridge have become unsafe.

The lakes in Lethbridge have a considerable amount of danger due to melting ice.

More people are doing activities outside and the city has to take precaution to keep people off the ice.
“We monitor the ice conditions in three of our water bodies, so once a week we measure the thickness and then we can announce to the public if the ice is safe or not,” said David Ellis, Parks Manager for the City of Lethbridge.

The city of Lethbridge has many strategies to keep people off the ice including press releases and using the media to announce how safe the ice really is.

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“The ice hasn’t met the criteria yet to allow people on, even though it feels like a long winter. We do have signs posted, so if the signs say stay off, it means it’s not safe,” said Ellis.

Ellis hopes that with the warmer temperatures approaching, they hope people use common sense.

Lots of ice on the main bodies of water in Lethbridge have already melted and the city hopes that it’s apparent there could be danger if people attempt to walk on the lakes.

“This time of year when the ice is soft it’s starting to melt around the edges. It should be pretty obvious that people should stay off because it’s not just unsafe its hazardous right now,” said Ellis.

Lethbridge standards for ice thickness safe enough to walk on is 12 inches and so far this winter it hasn’t reached that and it’s even further away now.

Parents also now have an extra worry while their kids go outside to play in the plus temperatures.

Shana Sanregret is a parent as well as a day care owner, so she makes sure to inform the kids about ice safety.

“We’re lucky my husband works for the city, he’s one that tests the ice. We go through ice safety quite often with them, when it’s good to be on it and when it’s not,” said Sanregret.

She says that kids aren’t the only ones who need to be careful when around the soft ice, adults need to be just as cautious.

While the bigger bodies of water are a big concern, the spring weather brings other safety hazards as well.

“With some of the bigger melts we have had and the hazards that come with it. It’s very important to teach them to stay off rocks,” said Sanregret.

For ice conditions on the lakes in Lethbridge, keep an eye on Lethbridge.ca

 

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Cole Parkinson is in his final year of Digital Communications and Media at Lethbridge College. After graduation he hopes to pursue a job in sports broadcasting, hopefully covering one of the three main teams in Toronto. His hobbies include watching and playing hockey, baseball, basketball as well as playing guitar in a punk rock band. He enjoys reading, listening to music, watching movies and TV. Favourite teams: Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Blue Jays and the Toronto Raptors Favourite bands: Green Day, blink-182 and Against Me! Follow him on twitter at @ColeParkinson4

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