(Arnolds Park)– Some tense moments Saturday evening on West Lake Okoboji.
Authorities say a 39-year-old man from Spirit Lake was operating a snowmobile about 100 yards off the beach of the Arnolds Park Amusement Park when he encountered thin ice and went through. Chris Youngbluth of the Arnolds Park Fire and Rescue Unit says crews were called to the scene around 7:00 p.m. He says several witnesses had reported hearing a man yelling for help. Youngbluth says crews responded with the airboat. He says they were able to get fairly close to the man and pulled him to safety with a rope. Youngbluth says the man was treated for what he believes was hypothermia. Other than that he says he should be okay.
Authorities aren’t releasing the man’s name.
Youngbluth is advising against any travel whatsoever on the ice. He says it was only a couple of inches thick in the area of where Saturday’s mishap took place.
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