Two Ice Fishers Rescued Near Sturgeon Bay

Photo by John Kolodziej.

The ice had barely formed over the past week, but already an ice-fishing rescue took place off the bay of Green Bay in Door County on Wednesday afternoon, Dec. 28, when the Southern Door Fire Department and U.S. Coast Guard delivered two ice fishers to safety near Sherwood Point Lighthouse. 

According to John Kolodziej, who lives nearby, the rescue occurred off Oak Road, a popular access point for ice fishers. 

“The ice was covering about one-half mile from the shoreline in the morning,” Kolodziej said in an email to the Peninsula Pulse. “I spotted a crack develop near the shoreline and noticed a large section of ice floating away. I went to see if anyone was fishing and saw the two fishermen walking on the floating ice.”

Kolodziej spoke with the men to learn whether they were OK and then called 911. The crack was only about 20 feet wide at that time, but by the time the rescue was underway, the sheet of ice they were on had broken off and floated away about 150 yards. Photos by John Kolodziej.