While residents continue to enjoy the ice fishing season, anglers should carry some key items to help in case of breaking through the ice.

Washington County Conservation Naturalist Megan Jorgenson recommends wearing an ice safety pick around your neck that can grab onto surrounding ice to help pull you out of the water. A floating safety rope is recommended for groups of those fishing. Jorgenson adds that packing extra dry clothes can help prevent hypothermia, and to be careful in the warming process, “It’s important not to stick that person that has been under water right into a hot room or vehicle or whatever it may be, because your body can go into shock with such a drastic change in temperature. So it’s important to just gradually reintroduce them or yourself to warmth. The first step may be to change into dry clothing or cover them with a blanket and get them out of the elements, whether that be getting them out of the wind or that sort of thing.”

Other useful tools residents should bring with them include a whistle to notify others, a basic first aid kit and a life jacket. With recent snowfall, Jorgenson reminds that it can slow down a body of water’s freezing process, making the ice more dangerous to be on. For the latest fishing report from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, visit here.