Slushy ice is keeping emergency crews busy

Rescue crews in northern Minnesota have responded to several emergency calls from snowmobilers, snowshoers and skiers stuck on lakes.

A thick layer of slushy, crusty ice has built up underneath the snow cover on some lakes.

Emergency crews have responded to about five calls a day the past few days, said Kris Reichenbach with the Superior National Forest.

She said people should still enjoy the outdoors...but be cautious.

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"Just really check out conditions before you go too far out on the lakes, see what it's like under the surface, because it may look nice and white and safe, but you could have some slushy conditions underneath," said Reichenbach.

Conditions seem to be worst on scattered lakes in north central Minnesota. Deep snow acts like a heavy blanket, trapping a slushy, crusty layer of ice underneath, she said.

"So what we've got is almost like a frozen quicksand situation on some lakes," she said.

In one case, the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office says two snowmobilers became stuck, and then the Orr Fire Department got stuck trying to rescue them. Both were eventually retrieved by a volunteer rescue squad. Officials say getting stranded in a remote area in these extremely cold conditions could be life threatening. They advise checking the ice underneath the snow before venturing out.