'The ice is only really starting to form': Police urge people to stay off the ice on Lake Simcoe

Members of the York Regional Police Marine Unit urge people to avoid going out onto the ice, saying it's just not ready yet.

"The ice is only really starting to form, and there's really no consistency, and there's not a lot of thickness to support the weight of people going out," said Const. Matt Goold.

Despite the warning, Kirill Zaretsky and his brother headed out onto the lake in Innisfil on Friday.

"We're not going to go out very far," he said. "Maybe 100 metres offshore."

However, Zaretsky had a change of heart minutes after being on the ice.

"It just wasn't worth it. Like it's very thin. If you fall through, it's very unsafe," he determined.

Jack Hayward, Blue Ice Report, monitors ice conditions and said he's measured three and a half inches up to 200 yards out.

"If you go up to Lefroy, which is three miles north, it's open water," he noted.

Ice hut operators don't plan to be out for at least another week.

Police encourage anyone anxious to head out on the ice to check with ice hut operators, adding that if they aren't on the ice, then no one should be.