Rotten ice serves a great purpose

BONNERS FERRY — Spring in Boundary County can be unpredictable and even as the weather warms, many lakes hide beneath a thick layer of ice, enticing people to venture out on its surface to ice fish or just play on the last residuals of a winter wonderland.

Often referred to as rotten ice, this layer of white can be deceptive. The ice can become honeycombed, caused by partial thawing, contaminates between ice grains, causing it to disintegrate. Other factors that can contribute to the dangers are waterfowl and fish. Fish can churn warmer water toward the surface, melting the ice from beneath.

Ice formed over flowing water and currents is also dangerous, especially near streams, bridges, and culverts. Snow can slow down the freezing process, acting as an insulator, and the extra weight of the snow can also cause the ice to be much weaker.

The strength of the ice cannot be judged by just its appearance, age, thickness, temperature, or snow cover. All of the factors come into play, combined with the depth of water, size of the water body, water chemistry, currents, the distribution of the load on the ice, and local climatic conditions.

With so much unpredictability, every venture out onto the ice can be a risk. Being prepared, always having a buddy system, and educating oneself are the best bets to deter a potential life-threatening accident. In the event that these fail, and a person goes through the ice, the clock is immediately ticking.

Hall Mountain Volunteer Fire Department has been training for these type of events for 28 years, and on Saturday, April 14, they gathered at the frozen Robinson Lake to practice their skills and try out new techniques and equipment.

Upon arrival, they unloaded the equipment and discussed the plans and reviewed the prior training, before donning new ice rescue suits that the Hall Mountain Volunteer Fire Association Ladies Auxiliary had purchased for them. The new suits allowed them the opportunity to play the roles of rescuers and victims, spending long periods of time in the icy water, while remaining dry and buoyant.

Hall Mountain Fire Chief Brad Lowther chose to wait until late in the season to perform the training so the ice would provide more real-world scenarios.

“It is easy to go out and cut a hole in the solid ice and practice, but you don’t get the realism of it,” said Lowther. “We wait until it is good and rotten. The time when someone may be out on the ice when they shouldn’t be. It’s harder to stay up; it’s a battle. It’s harder to get to somebody, so that is why we wait.”

As the first two firefighters, playing the roles of victims, ventured out onto the deceptively solid lake, it became evident how dangerous this type of situation could be. The ice near the dock offered a firm surface and they were able to walk with ease out toward the center of the lake. Hall Mountain Volunteer Firefighter Ben Allinger leaped up and down on the ice in an attempt to make a hole, while Hall Mountain Volunteer Firefighter Cossalman crossed the frozen lake and found rotten ice by falling through.

The first rescue attempt involved the use of Hall Mountain’s ice rescue sled, the only one in Boundary County. The sled enables the rescuer to run over very thin ice by distributing the weight over a large surface or to paddle through open water with a paddle fitted with an ice pick, that can also be used to grab the ice and drag the sled over it.

The rescuers quickly discovered that the sled was more difficult to maneuver on the rotten ice, as the edges dug in, and they were unable to push it, as they kept breaking through the ice. Despite the struggle, Hall Mountain Volunteer Firefighter Ben Huff, with Hall Mountain Volunteer Firefighter Wally Nyberg offering instruction and encouragement, was finally able to get the sled to the victim.

“It is way harder than it looks, because every time you take a step you break through the ice and you have nothing to push off of. I found out that it was digging into the ice a lot, instead of sliding on top,” said Huff. “Using the ice pick to pull didn’t work that well. It was very difficult to spread my weight out enough.”

Lowther explained that every time they do a training session like this, something new is learned.

“There is a couple guys who learned something,” he said with a chuckle. “The object was not getting the sled out there. The main object was getting to the victim. I think we picked that up today.”

The lessons and scenarios continued, sometimes with two victims at a time. Playing the part of the victim offered the firefighters insight as well. Although they knew that they had the luxury of wearing the suits, they learned that there were other things that could make a victim uncomfortable, allowing them to adjust their technique.

“It tells you how miserable it is and especially about how careful you have to be,” explained Allinger. “Having that rope around you like that hurts. It tells you how gentle you are being and how gentle you are not being. That is one reason they have us as victims, is that it gives us a lot better idea about what they are going through.”

They practiced tried and true methods of rescue like throwing rope bags to the victim. They discussed important protocol, like always approach the victim from the back, so as not to risk compromising their ice shelf, which could be their only line of survival, especially in a hypothermic weakened state. They also tried out new techniques, or improvements to existing ones.

“We were learning some new rope techniques we picked up last year. We do a z drag for low angle rope rescue and we incorporated that with our ice rescue and it makes it easier for pulling,” said Lowther.

The team worked well together, and even though they laughed and joked during the drills, there was an underlying sense of seriousness and the importance of safety. All gear was painstakingly checked and double checked, and they discussed all scenarios after finishing them, suggesting improvements.

“They are a good bunch,” said Lowther, looking out at his team packing up at the end of the day. “If I fell through the ice ... I would want these guys coming after me.”