Frozen lakes and ponds look nice, but first responders warn of dangers

It’s not just snow on the roads that Grand Strand residents need to be concerned about, but thin sheets of ice creeping across area lakes and ponds that could entice some children into playing in a dangerous area, say local emergency officials.

Many ponds are already covered in ice, and there is no such thing as safe ice, says Mark Nugent, spokesman for Horry County Fire Rescue.

“We ask you to stress to your children, as well as those they play with, to please stay away from this ice to prevent a tragedy from occurring,” the agency said in a statement.

If you see someone fall through ice, the wrong thing to do is run onto the ice in an effort to save them, as you could fall in and become a victim as well.

The first response should be to call 911. Then try to find an object for the victim to grab onto to keep their head above water until help arrives, such as a rope, tree limb, ladder, or even a scarf.

If you can’t reach the person, try throwing them something that would float like a plastic sled, or cooler.

The last resort is to form a human chain of people to try and reach the victim, Nugent said.

Once the person is out of the water, wrap and cover them to increase their body heart, and get them to a warm location as soon as possible and wait for emergency officials to arrive, Nugent said.

This story was originally published January 5, 2018 at 11:18 AM with the headline "Frozen lakes and ponds look nice, but first responders warn of dangers."