10 People Rescued From Ice Floes Off Lake Erie In Cleveland

CLEVELAND, OH — A group of people were rescued from ice floes in Lake Erie just off the shore in Cleveland Sunday afternoon.

An ice rescue team was first sent to the area of Edgewater Park around 3:30 p.m., when calls came in that 10 people were stranded on two separate ice floes near Edgewater Park, the Coast Guard said on Twitter.

The rescue took about an hour, as six people were guided off the ice by the Coast Guard and another four with help from the Cleveland Fire Department, officials said.

Air Station Detroit sent a helicopter to help, the Coast Guard said.

A massive ice sheet broke off while people were on the shore ice, a witness who captured photos on Twitter said. Rescue boats arrived before the helicopter, he said.

Dangerous weather had been reported along the lakefront in Cleveland earlier in the day, causing the Coast Guard to urge people to stay off the ice. National Weather Service Cleveland had issued a similar shelf ice warning.

"Avoid going on the ice and take steps to protect and help yourself," the agency wrote. "Near the water: wear a life jacket, carry a whistle, radio, and ice awls."