Important warning: safety behaviours to adopt on the ice of the St. Lawrence River, the Bay of Gaspé and the Saguenay River

January 13, 2021

Québec City, Quebec –  The Canadian Coast Guard, Central Region, and the Quebec Public Safety ministry remind the public that it can be very dangerous to venture out onto the ice of the St. Lawrence River, the Bay of Gaspé or the Saguenay River. We are experiencing a particularly mild start to winter with a prolongation of above seasonal temperatures, which has the effect of delaying the consolidation of the fast ice. The ice is too thin to allow for safe activities, so we recommend not going on the ice.

Remember that it is also dangerous to venture out on the ice at any time when an icebreaker or hovercraft is in the vicinity. Ice movement can occur and pose a real danger to anyone in the operational area of these vessels. The same applies to equipment on the ice.

Consequently, the Canadian Coast Guard and the Quebec Public Safety ministry strongly recommend that pedestrians, fish harvesters, and snowmobilers leave the ice when they see icebreakers in the immediate vicinity.

Coast Guard icebreakers are recognizable by their red hull with a transverse white stripe in the centre, and their white funnel bearing a maple leaf.