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TOOELE — The owners of a popular reservoir near Tooele say they're temporarily closing the waterbody to recreation over ice conditions.
Settlement Canyon Irrigation Company officials say the "influx of temperature and weather" has created "dangerous" areas where ice is thinner in some spots at Settlement Canyon Reservoir. They said they've attempted to educate visitors about the risks, but they've found that people still wander out in the unsafe areas, which they say can put bystanders and first responders at risk in a potential rescue effort.
It's unclear how long the closure will last, but officials pointed to recent incidents that influenced their decision.
A 20-year-old Salt Lake County sheriff's deputy died last year after saving his girlfriend who had fallen into the reservoir. That came nearly a year after a 14-year-old boy drowned after he and a friend had fallen through the reservoir's ice.
"Closing the reservoir is the only way we can truly prevent another tragedy from happening," the company wrote in a statement on Monday. "We know this may cause some inconvenience, but our top priority is our community's safety."
Ice should be at least 4 inches thick before it's safe to walk on and at least 6 inches thick before it is safe to ride a snowmobile or all-terrain vehicle on it, the Utah Division of State Parks points out. Utah Division of Outdoor Recreation officials note that hypothermia can kick in quickly in cold water.
"Cold water immersion can overwhelm even the strongest swimmers in minutes," said Ty Hunter, the division's boating program manager, in a statement last year.
