Know Before You Go: Ice Safety Tips and Emergency Resources for Beltrami County Waters

Two anglers fell through the ice on Upper Red Lake in a single morning, managing to pull themselves out before rescuers arrived. That near-miss is not an outlier for Beltrami County. In 2021 alone, the county saw two separate ice fatalities: a truck went through the ice on Lake Bemidji on December 24, and a vehicle broke through on Lake Irving on January 10. Those are not distant tragedies on unfamiliar water. They are lakes that residents walk past, fish on, and drive to work beside. With late March bringing rapidly shifting conditions across the county's frozen surfaces, understanding ice safety is not optional — it is the difference between a good day on the water and a call to 911.

Why Ice Is Never Truly Safe

The single most important thing to understand before stepping onto any Beltrami County lake or river is this: ice is never 100% safe. Ice seldom freezes uniformly. It may be a foot thick in one location and only an inch or two just a few feet away. That variability is the hidden danger. There are many factors that go into forming strong ice and ice thickness, meaning you can have four or more inches in one spot and just a few feet away be down to one or two inches.

Equally important: the threat is drowning, not hypothermia. Many people worry about hypothermia if they fall through the ice, but you are more likely to drown before hypothermia can set in. Contact with cold water causes involuntary gasping and hyperventilating that can lead to inhaling enough water to drown. Research shows that most through-the-ice fatalities are due to drowning, not hypothermia.

Ice Thickness Guidelines

The Minnesota DNR does not measure ice thickness on Minnesota lakes. Your safety is your responsibility. Temperature, snow cover, currents, springs, and rough fish all affect the relative safety of ice. That said, the DNR publishes minimum recommended thicknesses as a baseline:

• More than 4 inches for ice fishing or other activities on foot.
• 5 to 7 inches for riding a snowmobile or a small ATV.
• More than 20 inches for driving a large truck with a wheelhouse shelter attached.

These numbers assume high-quality clear ice. When a layer of snow melts and refreezes on top of lake ice, it creates white ice, which is only about half as strong as new, clear ice. Double the thickness guidelines when traveling on white ice. When measuring, count only the clear ice and not slush or snow that may be on top.

New ice is usually stronger than old ice. Four inches of clear, newly formed ice may support one person on foot, while a foot or more of old, partially thawed ice may not. Early and late ice are the most dangerous times, and people often overestimate ice strength during these transition periods.

Know the Local Waters

The Minnesota DNR's Bemidji area fisheries staff oversee 113 fishing lakes and 220 miles of rivers and streams in the region. Popular area waters include Upper Red Lake, Cass Lake, Lake Bemidji, and the lakes in Itasca State Park. Each of these bodies of water carries its own risk profile, and conditions can diverge sharply even across a single lake. Ice depths vary considerably throughout the area; for example, the main portion of Cass Lake has been measured at just 4 to 6 inches while most bays hold 10 to 12 inches.

Beltrami County is home to hundreds of lakes, many rivers, and miles of snowmobile and recreational trails. That abundance is part of what makes the county special, and also why a single season can involve incidents across dozens of different water bodies. Beltrami County law enforcement has been involved in several recent ice rescues on Upper Red Lake, and Sheriff Jason Riggs has urged people to reconsider driving or bringing ice fishing wheelhouses onto ice. As spring approaches, the risk on all these waters intensifies week by week.

Essential Gear Before You Go

The DNR urges anglers to bring ice picks, a foam life jacket or flotation suit, a drill and tape measure to gauge ice thickness, ice cleats, and a rope. Do not substitute an inflatable life jacket for a foam one: inflatable life jackets may not properly inflate in lower temperatures. Instead, people should wear a foam life jacket or flotation suit.

Check ice thickness at least every 150 feet using an ice chisel, ice auger, or a cordless quarter-inch drill with a long bit. If driving a vehicle onto the ice, cars, pickups, or SUVs should be parked at least 50 feet apart and moved every two hours to prevent sinking. Tell someone your plan before heading out, including which lake, which access point, and when to expect you back.

If You Fall Through

Acting quickly and correctly in the first seconds dramatically changes survival odds. If you fall through the ice, turn horizontal and kick your legs rapidly. If you manage to get back onto the ice, crawl on all fours. Spreading your weight across the surface reduces the chance of breaking through again. Once out, roll away from the hole and toward shore rather than standing and walking.

Never go back to help someone who has fallen through without a rope or flotation device in hand. Lay flat on the ice to distribute your weight, and slide the rope or a belt or a branch to the victim rather than reaching with your hands.

Stay Informed: Local Conditions Change Fast

Sheriff's departments, DNR updates, resort reports, and community pages often share lake-specific conditions more quickly than statewide resources. For Beltrami County waters, local outfitters and area resorts are often the fastest source of current ice reports. West Wind Resort on Upper Red Lake can be reached at (218) 647-8998; Timberline Sports and Tackle in Blackduck at (218) 835-4636; and Sunset Cove Resort near Cass Lake at (800) 279-4831.

Beltrami County transitioned its Emergency Notification System to Everbridge in 2026, which enables residents and visitors to receive alerts for a range of emergency situations when public safety professionals determine there is a threat. Signing up for that system means hazard warnings reach you directly rather than relying on you to find them.

Emergency Resources

The Beltrami County Sheriff's Office operates the Emergency Communications Center, staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, providing dispatch services for law enforcement, fire, and emergency medical services. The Sheriff's Office Recreation Division handles boat and water safety, ATV, OHV and snowmobile enforcement, and search and rescue.

• Emergencies: Call 911
• Non-emergency dispatch: (218) 333-9111 — the right number for situations like a stuck vehicle on ice, a suspicious crack pattern, or a non-injury incident.
• Minnesota DNR Information Center (toll-free outside the metro): 1-888-646-6367

Text-to-911 is available in Minnesota and is intended for genuine emergencies. Use it for situations when placing a voice call may put the caller in danger or when there isn't adequate service for a voice call. The DNR's Bemidji area fisheries office can also be reached at (218) 308-2339 for non-emergency questions about specific lakes.

The Spring Window

During the final stretch before spring, caution is essential. These are the times when ice may look sturdy but is often at its weakest. Most accidents occur during the spring thaw, when recreationists are already more aware of the risks of falling through. That awareness, however, does not always translate into different behavior. The people who have died on Beltrami County lakes knew ice could be dangerous. What closed the gap between knowing and surviving was the gear they brought, the thickness they verified, and the person they told before they left. None of those steps take more than ten minutes. They are worth every second.