DE PERE, Wis. — Lieutenant Dan Lotter knows the ins and outs of the Mustang Ice Commander rescue suit.
A member of De Pere Fire Rescue, he’s dressed in the suit for both training and actual rescues on the ice in the nearby Fox River.
“No ice is 100% safe,” Lotter said. “Always make sure that you understand the ice conditions before you go out and know that ice conditions can change at any point, especially out on the Fox River where the water is always moving.”
High temperatures were around 50 degrees in Green Bay Monday.
“Ice conditions right now, just looking out on the Fox River in your section in De Pere, it does appear to be that the ice is pretty thin and it has water on top of it, meaning it’s probably melting as we speak,” Lotter said. “That ice condition is deteiorating.”
Over the weekend, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reminded people that even ice that looks solid may be frail this time of year.
Frigid temperatures are expected to move back in mid-week, but only for a few days.
Poor conditions cut into Kevin Schommer's ice fishing last winter.
“I went out one time. I walked on the ice, walked off the ice and said, ‘That’s it. I’m not going any more,’” he said. “It was a bummer year for ice fishing.”
The Wrightstown resident was fishing for walleye from the shore at the mouth of the Fox River in Green Bay. He’s hoping for a better season this winter.
“It would be nice to get out,” he said. “We’ve got a couple spots here on the bay where we go and catch walleye, perch and whitefish.”
Lotter said at all times during the winter, people should monitor ice conditions, tell someone where they’re going and carry a set of ice picks to help pull themselves from the water onto the ice.
“It’s always recommended you have a PFD: A life preserver or some sort of flotation device with you,” he said. “Whether that’s something you can throw to someone else who falls in the ice or a flotation device for yourself.”