PORT CLINTON, OH — Twenty people had to be rescued Monday after they got stranded on an ice floe half a mile from the shore at Catawba Island State Park. The U.S. Coast Guard Sector Detroit was first notified of the incident around 10:21 a.m. and deployed a helicopter, an ATV and three airboats.
Seven of the people were able to return to land after repairing their airboat and the other 13 were safely transported by first responders. No injuries were reported by the Coast Guard.
An ice floe is a sheet of ice that has broken off from a larger ice formation and can be extremely dangerous as some people may not even know they’re on drifting ice, the Coast Guard said.
