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Accidents on Sebago Lake Ice Keep Rescuers Busy

February 24, 2009 - RAYMOND — Three motor vehicles and three snowmobiles broke through the ice on Sebago Lake this weekend, as hundreds of people flocked to the region for the annual Sebago Lake fishing derby.

No injuries were reported, but in one instance a pickup truck sank to the bottom of the lake. Efforts were under way Sunday night to raise the truck.

In another case, the Maine Warden Service said a snowmobile operator was cited for trying to ride across a patch of open water in Standish. His snowmobile sank, but the operator and a passenger were able to escape to safety.

"It became quite a carnival out there (on the lake)," Sgt. Tim Spahr, a spokesman for the Warden Service, said.

The most dangerous accident took place when the pickup truck, with a driver and passenger inside, crashed through a pressure ridge – a wrinkle in the ice. The truck sank in water as deep as 125 feet. The occupants escaped.

Spahr said it took about eight hours on Saturday to remove a pickup truck and trailer that had partially sunk into the ice in roughly the same location as the other accident – about one mile out from Raymond Beach.

Standish Fire Chief Brent Libby said his crews had to assist the owner of a car who became lost while looking for his friends, who were out on the ice in a fishing shack. The car partially sank into the ice but was removed successfully.

"It's not recommended," Libby said about driving vehicles onto ice-covered bodies of water.

However, state law does not give authorities the power to prevent such actions, Libby said.

By DENNIS HOEY, Staff Writer, Portland Press Herald, February 23, 2009


Lakes: Sebago Lake
Regions: Sebago


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