skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

DNR Warns Residents to Stay Off Ice

play audio
Play

Thursday, March 29, 2018   

MINNEAPOLIS — There have been at least four incidents of animals, people or both falling through ice and needing rescue in Minnesota communities in recent days.

In one case, a dog ran out onto a lake in Lino Lakes, broke through, and its owner ran after the dog and also fell in. In the Twin Cities, a horse fell through some ice.

Lieutenant Adam Block, a conservation officer at the Department of Natural Resources, said ice this time of year just isn't as sturdy. It needs to be twice as thick to support the same amount of weight it did in early winter.

"When you're in March, we're dealing with old ice,” Block said. “It's white, it's cloudy, it's not as strong - not nearly as strong. So, it's breaking down, so that's why you need to double the thickness of that type of ice."

According to the DNR, when ice is newly formed, it is safe to walk on at a thickness of four inches, and to drive a standard-sized car on a thickness of eight to 12 inches. Block recommended checking ice thickness with an auger or similar instrument every 150 feet or so - and said if you don't have a way of checking the ice, you shouldn't be out on it.

Block said warm, rainy and windy weather in the forecast for some parts of the state makes ice even more treacherous.

"You get that water on top of the ice and the wind's blowing that water back and forth, and it's just like holding an ice cube under the kitchen faucet,” he said. “It disappears fast."

Block said it isn't enough to stay off the ice. It's also important to keep pets on a leash.

"There's a lot of geese sitting on ice right now, which would draw in a dog, potentially,” Block said. “And then if that dog falls through, the instinct of the human pet owner is to go out after them - and then they become the victim, too."

He added it is likely most of the ice on lakes and ponds will completely melt this month, so your best bet is to just stay onshore until next winter.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
Iowa families can apply for up to $7,600 a year for private school costs. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

An ethics committee in the Republican-led Iowa House has dismissed a complaint filed by a group of community activists against a state lawmaker for hi…


play sound

Each spring, hundreds of thousands of California high school seniors have to figure out if they can afford to go to college in the fall - and two new …

Health and Wellness

play sound

A health care workforce shortage in New Hampshire is leaving Alzheimer's patients and their families with few options for treatment. Patients facing …


South Dakota ranks 49th in the country for its contribution to indigent legal defense costs, according to a 2023 report from the Indigent Legal Services Task Force. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

South Dakota is creating an Office of Indigent Legal Services after House Bill 1057 passed the Legislature with nearly unanimous support this month…

Social Issues

play sound

This year's high school graduates will be eligible for 14,000 new scholarships offered through Opportunity Next Colorado, a $21 million investment …

The new law will apply only to future sales of Indiana farmland. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

A bipartisan law set to take effect this summer prohibits foreign adversaries from buying Hoosier farmland. The signature of Gov. Eric Holcomb was …

Social Issues

play sound

Today, people across Arizona are voting in the Presidential Preference Election, a chance for registered Democrats and Republicans to choose their …

Environment

play sound

Traffic deaths are trending higher in Minnesota this year after a decline the previous year. Groups pushing for safer roads are convinced a small …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021