Tourists Stranded On Ice Floe Finally Make It Back To Shore
A group of tourists stranded on an ice floe in the Canadian Arctic have finally been rescued.
According to ABC, the 20 tourists were camping just north of Arctic Bay, Nunavut on a large chunk of ice. The group was camping with the guide company Arctic Kingdom when the ice drifted away from the shore.
Arctic Kingdom’s president and chief expedition officer Graham Dickson said that the group had planned to camp for about a week so they were well equipped to deal with the bizarre conditions. The group had food, heated tents, and supplies as they waited to return to shore.
Dickson said: “Nobody was in any immediate danger at any time … They were moving and whenever you’re on moving ice you have to take precautions because if it keeps moving or if it were starting to break up, then that could be dangerous. So you need to anticipate what could happen.”
Dickson said that the Royal Canadian Air Force dropped survival kits to the campers to make sure that they were well-equipped while stranded on the ice floe. The group was also given satellite phones so that they could contact the mainland.
On Tuesday night, the wind changed directions and moved the ice close enough to shore for the group to escape.
The group is back on shore, but they aren’t out of danger yet. The journey on the arctic ice moved the tourists to a place that is not accessible by land vehicles. Steve Neta of the RCAF said that helicopters will be sent in as soon as conditions are cleared to rescue the tourists.
