Sheriff: Fisherman falls into icy water following heated exchange
An ice fisherman fell into the water following a heated exchange that resulted in broken-up ice
By Hannah Mose
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SEBEWAING TWP., Michigan (WNEM) — An ice fisherman fell into the water following a heated exchange that resulted in broken-up ice, the Huron County Sheriff said.
Huron County Sheriff Kelly Hanson said on Friday, Feb. 24, about 10 a.m., deputies from the sheriff’s office were dispatched to an ice-covered Saginaw Bay canal off the end of Kilmanagh Road in Sebewaing Township.
Hanson said three Sebewaing-area men reported they were ice fishing on the canal when another Sebewaing-area man and a passenger approached them on an airboat and stopped.
According to Hanson, the three fishermen knew the driver of the airboat, and the driver got into a heated exchange with them, likely triggered by an old, unsettled dispute, which prompted the driver and passenger to leave.
However, when he left, the driver decided to make a turn around the three fishermen, and in doing so, he broke the ice all around them, Hanson said.
The sheriff said two of the fishermen were able to get away before the turn of the boat was complete, but one was not able to, and he fell into the water, which he reported was likely 8 feet deep.
The fisherman reported he was struggling for his life to stay afloat with his heavy clothing on, claiming he was never able to touch the bottom of the canal at any time.
Hanson said the driver of the airboat and passenger motored away, leaving the fisherman in the water. The other two fishermen who were able to stay on the ice reported they had to work very hard to get their companion to safe enough ice where they could pull him out of the water.
The bucket in this photo shows where the fishermen were initially sitting before the boat broke the ice around them.
The sheriff said the victims did not require medical attention, and the sheriff’s office tried to contact the airboat driver at his home with negative results.
Hanson said the report of this incident will be forwarded to the Huron County Prosecutor’s Office to discuss possible charges in a serious incident that shouldn’t have happened.
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