A St. Albert resident skates to an area by the banks of the Sturgeon River, shovel in hand. He takes the edge of the shovel to the ice, scraping off a bit of snow to show a large frozen air bubble underneath the ice.
"If you look, see the bubbles down there? I read it has to be two inches thick for an adult, but you can see it's way more than that," Michael said. He did not give the Gazette his full name because of privacy concerns. "I was a little nervous at first, but I've been out here a few times. I came and looked at how thick the ice is and made my own decision."
On Jan. 7, Michael was clearing some of the snow on top of the ice to create a little rink, joining a pathway of cleared snow that stretches down the Sturgeon River. Four young skaters cruised by. Michael told the Gazette he isn't the one who cleared the pathway, and he doesn't know who did.
"Some guy did it. He did it about a month ago, I think," Michael said. "And I did go on then, but I was a little more nervous. I wore a wet suit." He pointed to a wooden casing attached to a string he wore around his neck that had a nail inside, "so you have a handle with a nail if you happen to fall in."
Another family stood on the ice closer to the riverbank near the Children's Bridge. Susan Langstaff admitted her family's rule is a bit relaxed – if they see someone else on the ice, they figure it's safe enough to go on. With no physical signs along the river warning of thin ice, the family said they didn't know about the safety risks.
"You'd think if the city didn't want anyone on here, there would be more signage saying it's not safe," Langstaff said.
Having someone fall through the ice is exactly what city emergency officials are worried about, said Mike Bos, St. Albert fire prevention officer.
Over the winter months, the City of St. Albert and the fire department have sent out multiple notices on social media warning residents to stay off. But it seems the message isn't getting out there.
While the city maintains the paths along the river, the river ice itself is not being maintained by the city. Currently, the city does not monitor or measure the thickness or quality of the ice on the Sturgeon River.
"I think COVID-19 does play a factor, and people judge by what they know. They look at the ice and they say, 'The ice looks good to me' and try to use their best judgment. But on a river, your best judgment isn't good enough," Bos said.
On any body of moving water, particularly the Sturgeon River, ice thickness is highly variable, he said. You might step on one spot and feel like you're on solid ground, but take two steps forward and fall through. The depth of the river can also vary from a few feet to a few metres.
"Whether you're on a river or on one of the stormwater ponds, there is always a risk, especially with the warm weather we've been having. You may fall through and you will require rescue, get injured or even worse," he said. "You're always taking a risk any time you're on top of moving water."
Bos said whenever someone goes onto an outdoor ice surface, they should make sure they have someone with them so they can call 911 should anything go wrong. Hypothermia can develop in a matter of minutes in freezing temperatures, so time is important.
"The key is you have to get the attention of others. Grab onto the ice to try and get off the ice. And if you can't get yourself out, then keep yourself afloat until the fire department responds."
What's changed?
Long-time residents of St. Albert may have fond memories of skiing or skating on the frozen Sturgeon, and even remember a time when it was encouraged in the city. However, this is not that same river any more.
Stormwater outfalls on the Sturgeon are used to drain pooled rainwater and snowmelt from areas in the city to the river. These management facilities are also located at several stormwater ponds in St. Albert.
These facilities are what makes the difference. Stormwater facilities aren't safe for any type of recreation, including skating, sledding and walking, because inlet and outlet pipes underneath the ice keep water continuously flowing, according to EPCOR's website. Ice thickness varies across the whole surface, so while it may appear thick is some areas, other areas may have little to no ice.
Roger Belley worked in the city's parks and public works departments for decades before retiring in 2009, and grew up playing on the Sturgeon. He was the man who helped flood the ice surface on the river for skating, a task he said he enjoyed immensely.
"We worked very hard. I was very proud of the river, very pleased when you drove by there and saw 400 people skating on a Sunday afternoon. You take pride in those things," he said.
But there are simply too many variables for ice skating to be safe on the Sturgeon now, he said. Salt and grit from snowmelt filters down into the river, adding water and salt to the river which melts the ice. Before sediment filters were installed, the salt would turn the ice on the river to an almost "slushy" texture, he said. Warmer temperatures have a similar effect.
"It's been hovering around plus two, plus three all week. This warm weather is also doing some melting in some areas, believe it or not."
Along with opening up a freezeway at Lions Park, city council passed a motion last month to spend $11,000 on a study that will consider whether ice skating on the river could be possible.
There could be ways to do it, Belley said. He brainstormed whether creating and freezing a channel of water from the river with a six-inch wall of frozen snow as a barrier could mitigate sediment concerns.
"It'll be more narrow, but it'll still be safer because the all the salty water would stay on the outside of the ice surface," he said.
