WISE: Water and ice safety education

Wear a life jacket

• Weak swimmers or non-swimmers should wear life jackets.
• Make sure life jackets are the correct size.
• Adults should watch children even when the children are wearing a life jacket.
• Water wings or other inflatable devices do not take the place of life jackets.

Watch your children and other swimmers

• Actively watch when children are in – or near – the water. In 70% of child drownings, one or both parents were nearby. Avoid distractions like using cell phones or talking with other adults.
• You must watch children even with lifeguards on duty.
• Adult swimmers should watch out for each other, especially on lakes and rivers. 

Borrow life jackets for free at Lake Minnetonka flotation stations

• Gray’s Bay, 2831 County Road 101 South, Minnetonka, MN
• Spring Park Bay, 4141 Shoreline Drive, Spring Park, MN
• North Arm Bay, County Road 51, Mound, MN

Learn water safety

• Teach your kids to swim and learn how to swim yourself.
• Keep items near pools that can help rescue someone, like a shepherd’s (long) hook. If trying to rescue someone, hand something to them or pull them in with the hook.
• Empty kiddie pools right after you use them.
• Empty a bathtub right after you use it.
• Learn CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), a method to save someone’s life who has stopped breathing or whose heart has stopped.

• When boating on crowded lakes and rivers, slow down and stay at least 200 feet from the shoreline and other boats.
• Watch out for swimmers and people.
• Assign a sober boat operator before your day of boating.
• State law requires a carbon monoxide detector on any recreational boat with an enclosed area.
• State law requires children 10 and under to wear a life jacket. We recommend everyone wear life jackets.
• State law requires everyone to have access to a life jacket. The U.S. Coast Guard says life jackets could prevent 80% of boating deaths.
• When getting back into a boat, stay away from the boat propellers.

• Check ice conditions with a local bait shop or call us at 612-596-9880.
• Never consider ice completely safe. Never go onto ice alone. Carry a set of ice rescue claws.
• Let someone know where you’ll be and when you plan to go home.
• Only walk on ice that is at least 4 inches thick.
• For skating, physically check the ice with a chisel or drill. Ice changes even within a few feet.
• If you break through the ice, don’t panic. Turn around and get out the same direction you came from. Call 911 and seek warm dry shelter.
• Avoid any place where water is moving under the ice.
• Follow the same rules for life jackets as on open water.

Wake and ice restrictions

We enforce restrictions declared by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Restrictions are posted at the affected lakes.

For any posted wake or ice restrictions visit us on Facebook, Twitter, or on the HCSO SheriffApp. 

Beach closures

Check with your city or park board for current beach closures.