U.S. Coast Guard rescues missing ice fisherman on Lake Superior

Members of the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) completed the rescue of an ice fisher on Lake Superior yesterday, the organization said in a news release issued today. 

Chippewa County reported the missing 63-year-old male after he'd been seen on a snowmobile towing an ice shanty approximately one and a half miles off the shore of Lake Superior in Emerson, Michigan.

The ice-rescue team found the missing man after an MH-60 helicopter deployed from Air Station Traverse City located a heat source approximately two miles south of his last known position.

The Ice-Rescue Team proceeded to the identified location and found the man. No injuries were reported. 

The full release is as follows: 

Members of U.S. Coast Guard Station Sault Sainte Marie and Air Station Traverse City rescue a missing ice fisherman on Lake Superior Feb. 20, 2022.

Chippewa County reported the missing individual as a 63-year-old male on a snowmobile towing an ice shanty who was last seen approximately one and a half miles off the shore of Lake Superior in Emerson, Michigan.

U.S. Coast Guard Sector Sault Sainte Marie launched an Ice-Rescue Team from Station Sault Sainte Marie and the Coast Guard Ninth District launched an MH-60 helicopter from Air Station Traverse City. The crew of the MH-60 immediately located a heat source approximately two miles south of the missing person’s last known position.

The Ice-Rescue Team proceeded to the identified location and found the missing person. The person was taken back to a staging area for evaluation by awaiting Emergency Medical Service personnel. No injuries were reported.

U.S. Coast Guard training and technology greatly diminish required search times and provide crews with invaluable information and tools necessary to rescue persons in distress.

Please contact the Sector Sault Sainte Marie Public Affairs Officer at (906) 635-3310 with any questions.