State and local officials are warning Mainers to be careful when going out on lakes and ponds.
Officials say warm spells and rain have weakened the ice on bodies of water, and the ice isn’t as strong as you would expect it to be this time of year.
It follows the death of a man who fell through ice in Carmel on Friday.
The man was identified as the town manager of Carmel, 51-year-old Kevin Howell.
He and his 4-year-old son broke through the ice on Etna Pond.
Howell was able to lift his son out of the water, but he couldn’t get himself out and he died.
In another incident, five people had to be rescued when their UTV fell through the ice in Denmark on Saturday.
Officials say that people going out on a frozen body of water should bring flotation devices and self-rescue gear and use a chisel to test the ice depth.
