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Photo by the Ontario Police
09 Mar 2026

Canadian officials rescued 23 ice fishermen after ice sheet broke away on Lake Huron

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Extreme Weather
Extrication
Natural Disasters

Photo by the Ontario Provincial Police
  Cover photo above and photo  in text both by the Ontario Provincial Police taken in connection with the rescue.

OWEN SOUND, Ontario — Canadian emergency crews rescued 23 people by helicopter on Sunday March 8, 2026 after the ice sheet they were standing on broke away from shore and drifted into Lake Huron, authorities said.

The incident occurred near Owen Sound on Georgian Bay, about 200 kilometres northwest of Toronto, when wind and currents pushed a large ice shelf roughly two kilometres away from land. The drifting ice then fractured into several pieces, leaving dozens of ice fishers stranded and some partially submerged in the freezing water. 

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) said officers received reports shortly before noon on March 8 that numerous people were trapped on drifting ice near Balmy Beach. Emergency responders from police aviation and marine units, local fire departments, paramedics and other agencies were mobilized for a large-scale rescue operation. 

Two helicopters conducted repeated flights to lift the stranded individuals from the ice as conditions continued to deteriorate. Authorities said the ice floe was moving and breaking apart, increasing the danger for those stranded. 

By approximately 2:30 p.m., all 23 people had been safely airlifted to shore, according to police. Minor injuries were reported, primarily related to hypothermia, but officials said all those rescued were expected to make a full recovery. 

The nearby Cobble Beach Golf Course was used as a landing zone and triage area where emergency crews received the rescued individuals after helicopter extraction. 

 

Fishermen describe moment ice began drifting

Several members of the group were reportedly ice fishing when the ice separated from shore. One fisherman, Kevin Fox, wrote on social media that he first realized something was wrong when he checked his GPS device.

“I looked at my GPS. We were moving,” Fox wrote, adding that waves began forming behind the drifting ice. 

As the situation worsened, some of those stranded attempted to move toward thicker ice while others fell partially into the frigid water while the floe split into smaller sections. 

 

Rapid rescue credited with preventing tragedy

Police said the situation quickly became life-threatening due to the risk of hypothermia in near-freezing water. Strong coordination between aviation crews, firefighters and paramedics helped ensure that everyone was safely recovered within roughly two and a half hours of the initial distress call. 

Officials later warned that warming temperatures and unstable late-season ice can make frozen waterways particularly dangerous. Police urged the public to avoid venturing onto ice at this time of year because conditions can change rapidly due to wind, currents and fluctuating temperatures. 

 

Sources