Anglers are warned to pack up and get off the ice

FARGO, N.D. (Valley News Live) - It’s that time of year again, anglers are warned to start packing up and heading off the ice.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has marked a deadline for the northern portion of the state to get all possessions off the lakes by March 21st, and that doesn’t just mean fishes houses.

“When we talk about removing these ice houses one of our big concerns that we get is litter,” said Minnesota State Conservation officer Angela Warren.

Warren says it’s common for people to leave items outside that eventually freeze into the ice which creates more of an effort to chip out.

“Nobody wants to have all of that in the lake, it’s not good for the fish, it’s not good for the people, cans float up onto the beach, somebody’s child goes out there, they step on it, they cut themselves, those type of things,” said Warren.

Conservation officers will not hesitate to issue citations for littering. And, if shelters aren’t off the lakes in time, they could be removed or destroyed, along with any property inside.

But Warren said they’ve seen a different trend over the years, “A lot of houses that froze down and I know that they were using tow trucks and everything else to try to get them off the lake.” “As it’s melting and freezing at night, melting and freezing, you’re going to end up having your house get frozen in and it’s a lot of work to chip them out.”