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Abandoned ice hut submerged in Lake Simcoe sparks MNRF search

An abandoned ice hut is found submerged in the southern portion of Cook's Bay, Lake Simcoe on Wed., March 6, 2024. (Source: Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry) An abandoned ice hut is found submerged in the southern portion of Cook's Bay, Lake Simcoe on Wed., March 6, 2024. (Source: Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry)
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The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) is looking for the owner of an ice fishing hut that was abandoned and is now submerged in Lake Simcoe.

Conservation officers found the wooden hut with a blue tarp roof when they checked the lake on Wednesday with a remotely piloted aircraft system.

MNRF says the abandoned hut was discovered in the southern portion of Cook's Bay in the water on the edge of the ice pack.

An abandoned ice hut is found submerged in the southern portion of Cook's Bay, Lake Simcoe on Wed., March 6, 2024. (Source: Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry)

No registration numbers were found on the hut, which is believed to have been purposely ditched by its owner.

"The ministry takes this situation very seriously," the MNRF stated.

Ice huts aren't technically scheduled to be off the lake until March 15, but most ice hut operators have called it a season because of the unseasonably mild conditions, making the ice unpredictable and unsafe.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the ministry's tip line at 1-877-847-7667 or Crime Stoppers to remain anonymous at 1-800-222-8477.

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