Members of Cumberland Fire Department’s second platoon took advantage of the ice formation from recent cold temperatures to conduct ice rescue drill scenarios in the pond behind Station 5 on Arnold Mills Road Sunday morning.
All Cumberland fire companies carry ice rescue equipment in case of an emergency.
Fire Chief Nick Anderson is reminding everyone that a body of water needs a minimum thickness of 4 inches of new and clear ice to be considered acceptable to walk on. Ice thickness will vary location to location. No amount of ice can be guaranteed to be completely safe, he said.
Anderson noted that the state’s phone number for checking the condition of ice is 401-667-6222. The state only checks three major park locations, but as of Feb. 16, had deemed that there was no safe ice in Rhode Island, he said.