HELENA, Mont. (AP) - Two ice fishermen were rescued after falling into the water at Holter Lake over the weekend, Lewis and Clark County officials said.
Three men were fishing when two of them broke through the ice at about 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Sheriff Leo Dutton said. The two men were able to get out of the water, but felt the ice was safer to the west, where there is no road. The third man returned to the east side of the reservoir, near the Log Gulch Campground, to call for help. The campground is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) north of Helena.
Members of the search and rescue team and the Wolf Creek Craig volunteer fire department arrived with cold weather flotation suits just before 6 p.m. Rescuers broke through the ice several times, but were able to reach the men, Dutton told the Independent Record.
The men - a 34-year-old from Great Falls and a 29-year-old from Missoula - were cold enough that they were cramping, but they were able to walk to the other side of the lake with assistance, Dutton said.
The men were treated for hypothermia.
A National Guard helicopter was on standby in case search and rescue teams couldn’t reach the men, Dutton said.
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