Ice fishing huts in danger with arrival of cargo ship in eastern Ontario

Ice fishing fans who have huts on Lake Ontario in the Bath area are being advised to remove them before Thursday for the arrival of a cement carrier that is expected to make the ice “dangerously unstable” on its approach to the nearby Lafarge cement facility.

The MV Sunnavik, a Canadian ship with a deadweight of 8,722 metric tonnes (and the first cargo ship with sails on the Great Lakes) will be approaching the shore from the west side of Amherst Island at dawn on March 6.

The OPP is warning anglers that there are still numerous ice huts in the area. “The ice will become dangerously unstable due to the passage of MV Sunnavik,” the post from the police service said. “It is strongly recommended that the huts be removed before Thursday and that no one be present on the ice on Thursday morning. If you know someone who ice fishes in the area or has a hut on the ice in the area, please let them know.”

Bath is on the north shore of Lake Ontario, midway between Belleville and Prince Edward County and Kingston in eastern Ontario.