Current Lake Ontario conditions and ice shelves pose serious safety risks, officials say
Posted January 25, 2022 7:58 pm.
Last Updated January 26, 2022 7:19 pm.
A video posted on Instagram showing a woman walking on a frozen part of Lake Ontario in Toronto has highlighted concerns about current conditions along the waterfront.
“If you are skating in an area of the lake like Lake Ontario and you see open water not far then that’s not safe ice because that water flows and it can go underneath the ice where you are and that weakens the ice,” Barbara Byers, a senior research officer with the Lifesaving Society, told CityNews on Tuesday.
In an Instagram post Tuesday morning, user @toronto_papi_ posted a video of a woman identified as their wife walking on a frozen, snow-covered portion of Lake Ontario with the Toronto skyline visible in the distance. The unidentified user said the video was taken Sunday afternoon.
As others questioned if the ice would break, the user said the area in question was believed to be shallow and “ankle” depth.
Later in the day, a subsequent post by the user with video captured from one of the City of Toronto’s ferries showed skaters near the edge of an open body of water.
RELATED: York police warning about unsafe ice conditions after several people were rescued over the weekend
A photo posted on Reddit days earlier appeared to show people venturing onto the snow-covered ice. It’s unclear when the photo was taken, but many questioned the safety.
During a visit to Ward’s Island Tuesday afternoon, CityNews saw a wide-open body of water near the harbourfront lining up with the centre of downtown. A vast portion of the harbour is currently covered with snow.
When it comes to Lake Ontario’s ice levels, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) data showed it wasn’t until recent days that it reached typical average ice cover — lagging up until mid-January. Of all the Great Lakes, the NOAA reported Lake Ontario having the least amount of ice concentration on Tuesday (estimated to be just around 8.98 per cent) while Lake Erie had the highest (44.93 per cent).
Byers said given the overall weather conditions combined with pandemic-related regulations affecting recreational amenities at times, she understands the desire to get out and enjoy the surroundings.
“Unless you’re really, really sure about the quality of the ice, it’s better to go out to an outdoor rink,” Byers said.
So what are the ideal conditions when it comes to ice? She said there’s no complete guarantee the ice will be safe, especially if there is flowing water underneath.
However, she said darker-coloured ice without white and blue gradations tends to be thicker, adding that’s a subjective judgement. Byers also said you want to look for completely frozen bodies of water at the surface and bare patches that haven’t been covered with snow (noting snow covering ice acts warms it up slightly and weakens its strength).
Another important element is temperature as she emphasized a guideline of having at least a steady week of -10 C weather during the day and colder temperatures overnight.
Byers also said ice needs to be around eight centimetres thick to support foot traffic, something that would require a chisel and ruler to figure out and even so she added ice layers can vary in width — even in relatively close proximity.
Started from the bottom now we're here. It was a bit of a slow start, but Lake Ontario ice cover is running right on the historical average as of yesterday. Ice is covering almost 22% of the Great Lakes now. pic.twitter.com/eL3HHPFY6U
— Natasha Ramsahai (@CityNatasha) January 25, 2022
Const. Kevin Lee, who serves with the Toronto Police Service’s marine unit, echoed the concerns with respect to the current conditions.
“Within the city of Toronto, it’s even less likely to be able to guarantee safe ice because there are warm water outflows that are underneath the ice deteriorating it from the bottom up,” he said, adding road salt mixed with water runoff from catch basins is also a contributing factor to ice conditions in certain areas.
“There’s not a lot of warning. It’s not like in a movie where there’s a big crack all of sudden and you’ve got time to get out of the way. One step and the next one you’re down in the water.”
Lee said the marine unit typically responds to around 20 to 25 incidents of people needing rescues every winter. While he encouraged people to stay on land right now, he offered this advice should people come across those in need of assistance.
“The first thing you would want to do is call 911 or get someone else there to assist. Assisting from shore is the best thing you can do because the person who has fallen through the ice made all the surrounding ice unstable,” Lee said.
“Stay as far back from the opening as possible, and if you can get anything that can get you some reach – a branch, a rope, anything you can get to pull them from a distance.”
While he didn’t encourage others to go on the ice out of concern for putting themselves in danger, he said people should spread themselves across the ice versus standing in order to better distribute the weight and reduce the chances of surface breakage.
Halton Regional Police issue warning over ice shelves
The Halton Regional Police Service issued a warning on its Twitter account Tuesday morning about ice shelves building up in the region.
CityNews visited Oakville’s waterfront on Tuesday and saw ice shelves along Lake Ontario that extended metres into the open body of water with footprints indicating visitors walked onto the buildups.
“Ice shelves are forming at various locations along Lake Ontario’s shoreline. Nifty to look at, but not safe to explore,” the tweet said.
“While the water is shallow underneath, if you pop through you may not get out. Remember no ice is 100 per cent safe.”
Ice shelves are forming at various locations along Lake Ontario's shoreline. Nifty to look at, but not safe to explore. While the water is shallow underneath, if you pop through, you may not get out.
Remember: No ice is 100% safe.
[Illustration: Tom Gill, with consent] pic.twitter.com/utZEZ722H5
— Halton Police (@HaltonPolice) January 25, 2022
Update to CityNews story on Toronto’s shoreline safety equipment
CityNews reported in October on concerns raised by a kayaker about unsafe life-saving measures along Toronto’s waterfront, namely a lack of ladders reaching into the water and certain other ladders in disrepair.
“I’ve pulled people out of the water myself and a lot of other people have complained there aren’t enough ladders,” Ed Hore told CityNews at the time while also referencing ladders that are kept six to eight feet above the water at the boardwalk level.
“If nobody is here to lower the ladder to you, then you’re done for.”
City of Toronto representatives said in a statement at the time additional devices are being installed on boardwalk areas on a regular basis, adding ladder installed to dock walls are an “old standard for lifesaving.” It also said more than 440 lifesaving stations are located along 60 kilometres of shoreline and that ones at beaches and designated swim areas were being prioritized for review.
CityNews contacted the municipality to ask for an update on the issue. A City of Toronto spokesperson said in a new statement that there are no plans to install new ladders and a review by the Lifesaving Society found stations at beaches “met or exceeded all safety standards.”
When it comes to the 60 lifesaving stands between Bathurst and Parliament streets, the statement said all are inspected regularly.
A representative for Coun. Joe Cressy, whose ward encompasses the downtown waterfront and the Toronto Islands, said they are following up with City of Toronto staff for more information on the evaluation “and to determine whether there are additional measures to the standard requirements that can be implemented to increase safety along our waterfront.”
Meanwhile, concerns were raised by Halton police about people walking on ice shelves in Oakville. Found this area along the waterfront.
Officials urged people to take extra caution around these areas. pic.twitter.com/KJaeRmTHVt
— Nick Westoll (@NWestoll) January 26, 2022
