News Photo by Julie Riddle A snowmobiler heads toward shore on Grand Lake, which was dotted with ice fishing shanties and vehicles on Saturday.

PRESQUE ISLE — Nearly every day in recent weeks, shanties, snowmobiles, and four-wheelers have peppered the white ice of Grand Lake as intrepid ice fishing enthusiasts take advantage of cold temperatures and solid ice after a warmer-than-usual December.

Locals with years of experience may know the keys to safe ice fishing, but safety precautions are still in order, and even long-timers need to remember that no ice is safe ice, said Lt. Jim Gorno, law enforcement division supervisor for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.

Last week, a fisherman was killed on Lake Michigan when his off-road vehicle broke through a pressure crack.

Gorno doesn’t want that to happen again.

Inland lake ice is unpredictable, Gorno said. Especially in spring-fed lakes like Long Lake and Grand Lake, ice thickness can change quickly from the five inches needed to support a snowmobile to a thinner ice cover not able to support the weight of anglers and their vehicles.

Anyone heading out onto the ice should stop frequently to check ice depth before trusting their lives to it, Gorno said.

Slipping into ice-cold water can be deadly, even with help nearby and adequate rescue equipment at hand, Gorno said. The shock of coldness causes a gasp reflex that causes someone to inhale water and drown.

Getting out of water is difficult, between the numbing cold and cumbersome winter clothing and boots that can add 100 pounds when wet, Gorno said.

If someone falls into ice water and is able to climb out, they are still in danger of hypothermia and need to get out of wet clothes and find warmth quickly.

For those venturing into ice, Gorno recommends several potentially life-saving and simple steps to take first:

∫ Get an ice pick, he said. A sharp implement — even a set of car keys — hung around a neck can be used to dig into ice to provide a handhold for climbing out of cold water.

∫ Pack a rope that can be thrown to someone in trouble, and place cell phones in a water-proof dry bag.

∫ Tell someone where you’re going and when you’ll be back.

∫ Don’t fish alone.

This winter, a side-by-side, a four-wheeler, and several snowmobiles have gone through ice in northern Michigan, Gorno said.

Nobody was hurt in the incidents, but lives were endangered, and the riders had to go fishing for their equipment instead of fish.

Ice fishermen with experience know to be cautious, but extra care can save lives, Gorno said.

“They know their stuff,” Gorno said, “but 99% of them have never dropped into freezing cold water.”