Lake ice is too thin for fishing, sheriff’s office warns after rescue

Anoka Co. deputy makes daring ice rescue

Deputies with the Anoka County Sheriff's Office made a daring ice rescue on Sunday after two men and a dog went through the ice on a lake in Nowthen, Minnesota. FOX 9's Courtney Godfrey spoke with the deputies who rescued them.

NOWTHEN, Minn. (FOX 9) - The ice is still too thin to walk on, Anoka County authorities are reminding the public after two men and a dog needed to be rescued on Sunday.

The Anoka County Sheriff’s Office says the two men and the dog needed to be rescued from a lake in Nowthen around 3:34 p.m. Sunday. The men were out ice fishing when they went through the thin ice. A passerby was able to slide a canoe toward the men, which they climbed into and waited for deputies to arrive.

"My intent was to wait for the proper rescue equipment to get there but once I saw their mental and physical condition deteriorating, I knew we had to go now," said Deputy Chris Fjeld.

Fjeld army crawled across the ice with a rope attached to get to the victims, as his colleagues on shore pulled them back to safety.

"My initial reaction was, ‘I don’t like it.’ But when you only have minutes, you have to react and act and that’s what Chris did," said Deputy Curt Grabmeier. "His instincts kicked in."

2 men, dog rescued from thin ice in Minnesota

Anoka County Sheriff's deputies rescued two men and a dog after they went the ice while fishing.

The men and the dog were rescued from the lake and taken to the hospital where they were treated for symptoms of hypothermia.

The sheriff’s office is reminding everyone the ice is still too thin to be out on and by walking or driving onto lakes you're putting yourself at risk of hypothermia or death.