Breaking News
Features

Remember When?

2 min read
Daily Press file photo Jeff King, left, receives treatment from Rampart Paramedic Cinda Kelly in the lunchroom of Escanaba’s Water Treatment Plant on Monday, Feb. 12, 1996. King and his passengers, Randy Potvin, seated, and Dan Bricker, gazing out the window at the bay, plunged through the ice in their pickup while ice fishing. The men were not aware that iron ore shipping traffic had left a channel of open water in the bay. Mark Rose, Ken LaMarche, Jay DeShambo, and William Gouin, who worked at the water treatment plant, were aware of the open water and were watching the truck travel across the ice with binoculars from the plant’s lunchroom window. The truck traveled parallel to the crack, until it began to go down into the bay — first one side, and then the other. Rose called 911 for help, while the three anglers worked to get onto the ice. King and Bricker were able to escape onto the ice easily, but Potvin’s foot was pinched in the truck’s door. He was in water up to his head before Bricker managed to free him by tugging on his arm. The men then began walking to shore, with DeShambo and LaMarche coming out to help, but as he approached, Bricker fell through the ice a second time in shallow water. He managed to free himself and made it to shore. The water plant workers then used a ladder and a chain to pull the other two anglers to shore over the thin ice. The workers then gave the men dry clothing, coveralls and boots to replace their wet clothing.

Daily Press file photo

Jeff King, left, receives treatment from Rampart Paramedic Cinda Kelly in the lunchroom of Escanaba's Water Treatment Plant on Monday, Feb. 12, 1996. King and his passengers, Randy Potvin, seated, and Dan Bricker, gazing out the window at the bay, plunged through the ice in their pickup while ice fishing. The men were not aware that iron ore shipping traffic had left a channel of open water in the bay. Mark Rose, Ken LaMarche, Jay DeShambo, and William Gouin, who worked at the water treatment plant, were aware of the open water and were watching the truck travel across the ice with binoculars from the plant's lunchroom window. The truck traveled parallel to the crack, until it began to go down into the bay -- first one side, and then the other. Rose called 911 for help, while the three anglers worked to get onto the ice. King and Bricker were able to escape onto the ice easily, but Potvin's foot was pinched in the truck's door. He was in water up to his head before Bricker managed to free him by tugging on his arm. The men then began walking to shore, with DeShambo and LaMarche coming out to help, but as he approached, Bricker fell through the ice a second time in shallow water. He managed to free himself and made it to shore. The water plant workers then used a ladder and a chain to pull the other two anglers to shore over the thin ice. The workers then gave the men dry clothing, coveralls and boots to replace their wet clothing.

Starting at /week.