A makeshift memorial to 23-year-old Tyler Ballance has been erected on the Bay of Quinte shoreline at Point Anne. Ballance died when he fell through the ice while fishing on Saturday. Photo by James Tubb, QNet News
By James Tubb
BELLEVILLE – Quinte emergency services are urging residents to stay away from thin ice following a tragic weekend on the Bay of Quinte.
Shortly after 5 p.m. on Saturday evening, Prince Edward OPP responded to a report of an individual who was fishing and had fallen through the ice near Point Anne.
Belleville Police and Fire, Quinte West Fire and Rescue, and Prince Edward County Fire were all called upon to help locate the missing fisherman.
When search efforts failed to locate the man, the OPP’s Underwater Search and Recovery Unit was called on Sunday to aid in the effort. The unit eventually recovered the body, a 23-year-old Belleville man. News reports have identified him as Tyler Ballance, 23, of Belleville
In an interview Monday with QNet News, Prince Edward OPP Const. Aaron Miller warned residents that no ice is safe ice and there can be different degrees of thickness throughout a patch of ice.
“Just because the ice looks thick, it doesn’t mean that it is,” he said.
Ice Safety | Even if ice looks safe, it isn’t! Currents in the BoQ make the ice very uneven. While there could be 8” in one area, there could only be 1” in another. @BellevilleFire is reminding residents to stay off and stay safe. pic.twitter.com/4QHAbjy0Qh
— City of Belleville (@BellevilleON) January 10, 2021
Quinte West deputy fire chief Rick Caddick told QNet Tuesday morning that residents should stay off the ice until it is confirmed safe.
“People push the boundaries when it comes to ice safety,” he said.
The Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs has released a list of factors for people to determine if ice is safe or not. You can find the list here.
The repeated message from those in emergency services is to stay off of the ice unless it is deemed safe and to be cautious while on it as conditions on all ice can change in an instant.
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