BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Many people in Western New York love to be outdoors in winter, and that means more than taking advantage of being out enjoying the snow. It can also mean being out on the ice, which given the recent cold, is starting to grow in coverage and in thickness on ponds and on the lakes.
Knowing the ice thickness of a water body before, for example, going ice fishing, is key to your safety. So what exactly is a safe ice thickness, if any?
The answer is…there is no such thing as perfectly safe ice, but there are guidelines that you can follow to help you make the right decision.
If you’re planning on walking on pond ice, the rule of thumb is that four inches is barely safe. Snowmobiles or ATVs need a solid seven inches, while a small car needs a minimum of eight inches of ice for it to be acceptably safe. Larger vehicles need even more.
Before you head out on the ice, always check it using a tool, like a chisel. Many factors can make it unsafe such as temperature and wind fluctuations over time, so be sure to only use these numbers as a rough guideline.
