OHIO — Officials are urging people to stay off water that looks frozen, saying that while many may look frozen-solid they can be deceiving.  

Joe Ponzi, chief of Genoa Township Fire Department, has been doing this for 31 years. He said they often get calls where people’s pets have fallen through ice.

What You Need To Know

  • Joe Ponzi, chief of Genoa Township Fire Department, has conducted water rescues for 31 years

  • Officials use a "Rescue Alive Sled" for rescues
  • Trainings are held to practice water rescues in the cold temperatures

  • When there’s snow on water, that can act as an insulator and slow down the freezing process

Joe Ponzi, chief of Genoa Township Fire Department, has been doing this for 31 years. He said they often get calls where people’s pets have fallen through ice.

“The easiest rule to remember is to stay off the ice,” Ponzi said. “The biggest thing that we can tell the owner is to not go out on the ice after their pet. We have pulled multiple pets out of icy ponds successfully.”

Whenever they get a call, they have a device which is called the “Rescue Alive Sled.” They use that to go out and help whoever has fallen into the ice.

When they’re training on how to rescue someone, they first dig a hole and practice pulling out the person in need. Brady Johnson, battalion chief of Genoa Township Fire Department, has been on the job for 25 years.

“The biggest thing we see when it comes to the ice is people thinking that it’s thick enough to walk on, and that can be very deceiving, especially when there’s snow on the ice,” Johnson said.

When there’s snow on water that can act as an insulator and slow down the freezing process, it’s not safe unless an official report shows it’s four inches thick.

Johnson gave some tips on what to do if someone has fallen through the ice.

The main thing is to control the breath and do not go after that person, call 911.

“It’s really hard to do, but you have to stay calm,” Johnson said. “If you can reach for them or can you throw them a rope, something for them to grab on to pull them out.”

The strongest ice is clear ice and if people are going out, for example, for fishing, they should be prepared.

While the body cools 25 times faster in cold water than what it does in the same temperature in the air, there is a risk of frost bites.

Safety is a priority.

“A critical part of that would be to have some method of being able to communicate to somebody in case you have a problem, a cellphone,” Ponzi said. “A big thing is to have a life jacket on in case you were to break through the ice. You have something that’s going to keep you afloat in that water.”