J. Carl Ganter / Circle of Blue
Hope is waning for those who hoped to stick an ice shanty on Little Traverse Bay this winter.
The same goes for nearby Torch and Elk lakes, two large inland waters adjacent to the bay. At the height of Michigan winter, all three are so devoid of ice, fishing guide Jim Chamberlin said, “you could launch a boat out there.”
On the kettle lakes of Southeast Michigan, thin ice has law enforcement officials responding to an uptick in on-water emergencies and urging residents to think twice before venturing out to skate, fish or snowmobile.
The annual maximum ice cover on the lakes is declining 5% per decade.
Written By:
Danielle Kaeding / Wisconsin Public Radio | 9:00 am, Feb. 2, 2021 ×
Ice covers rocks in Lake Superior just off of Wisconsin Point recently. The big lake is 8 inches lower than it was one year ago. (Jed Carlson / 2020 file / Superior Telegram)
Fans of ice fishing on the Great Lakes may be in for a disappointment this winter as ice cover reached near-record lows in January. Average ice cover on the Great Lakes reached its second-lowest level for the month since record-keeping began nearly 50 years ago.
The average ice cover for the Great Lakes in January was 4.4%, which is just behind the record monthly low of 4.08% set back in January 2002. Ice cover on Lake Superior and Lake Michigan were also near-record low ice cover for the month.
Winter ice cover on Great Lakes declining 5% per decade. //end headline wrapper ?>Great Lakes basin. (Public Domain).
Fans of ice fishing on the Great Lakes may be in for a disappointment this winter as ice cover reached near-record lows in January. Average ice cover on the Great Lakes reached its second-lowest level for the month since record-keeping began nearly 50 years ago.
The average ice cover for the Great Lakes in January was 4.4 percent, which is just behind the record monthly low of 4.08 percent set back in January 2002. Ice cover on Lake Superior and Lake Michigan were also near-record low ice cover for the month.
Which lakes are most at-risk of losing their ice?
In the Great Lakes region, the deepest lakes are the most sensitive to ice loss. Shallow lakes will generally still freeze, with some exceptions in a really warm winter. But these large, deep lakes like Lake Superior, Lake Michigan and Lake Champlain are already experiencing ice-free years. That will get worse in the coming decades.
How did you arrive at that conclusion?
We used historical ice data to develop statistical models for the future for 1.35 million lakes.
One of my favorite places to study is Lake Suwa in Japan, where 15 generations of Shinto priests have maintained an ice record since 1443. That lake failed to freeze just three times in the first 250 years of its record. And since 1950, it has failed to freeze one out of every four years. Since 1990, it s only freezing twice a decade. And we projected that it may lose ice cover permanently by 2040.
SASKATOON The Saskatchewan Coroners Service has released a plan detailing the steps it will take in emergency situations involving multiple deaths. Clive Weighill, former Saskatoon police chief, recommended that the province create a mass fatality plan following the Humboldt Broncos bus crash he then became the chief coroner. “We had sent one coroner and an assisting coroner to the scene,” said Weighill about the 2018 crash that killed 16 people and injured 13 others. “It certainly played out very quickly that one person can’t coordinate working at the scene, trying to deal with the families, setting up a morgue, getting transportation for the decedents. It’s just too much for one or two people to do.”