Idiots in more than one state,
Driver plunges car into Lake Winnebago
By Amie Jo Schaenzer
The Reporter [email protected]
Taking the path less traveled is not recommended when venturing out on lakes and rivers in winter, a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources official says.
Travel where others are or where others have safely been to ensure the area is frozen solid, said Fond du Lac County Conservation Warden Ed McCann.
He advises against driving or walking in the following areas: the mouth of the Fond du Lac River where Waste Water Treatment Plant discharge water runs into Lake Winnebago and the Fond du Lac River.
Open water exists by the treatment plant discharge site and the river has numerous thin spots, he said.
A man broke both those rules — and a few others — about 11:30 p.m. Monday when he drove north on the Fond du Lac River and into the open water of Lake Winnebago at Stinky Point, west of Frazier Point in Lakeside Park, said Capt. Jon Gutzmann of the Fond du Lac Police Department.
The man was arrested on a drunken driving charge, he said.
The driver was not injured but his car was stuck in the water, requiring removal on Christmas Day.
People should use common sense when driving on the ice, said McCann. Full-sized vehicles should never drive on the ice, he said.
Ice fishermen have been on Lake Winnebago for about a month now and all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles have also been out on the lake, McCann said.
To stay safe he advises traveling on the ice with a friend, letting someone on shore know where you will be and/or carrying an ice pick — available at sporting good stores — to pull yourself out of the water and back onto the ice.
“Just use your head — that’s the biggest thing — travel cautiously,” McCann said. “Catching a fish isn’t worth risking your life.”