Why you should know this: It could save your life to understand that the ice covering the water looks white from below, while the opening you fell through will appear dark. Consequently, you should aim for the dark spot when you swim toward the surface.
Another useful tip: Once you’ve located the opening, turn your back to the edge, rest your elbows on the ice, and kick your legs as if you were swimming on your back. This technique should help you slide back onto the frozen surface. Stay flat on your back and push yourself away from the hole, then flip onto your stomach and crawl or roll to safety, making sure not to use your knees or elbows.
Correction: I meant crawl or roll, not ‘rob’, to avoid any confusion.
Update 2: For those doubting this: This is official safety advice from Danish authorities, found here:
My theory is that while extremely thick ice might look dark to a scuba diver, that isn’t the type of ice people usually fall through. I haven’t personally experienced this, so I can’t be certain.
Does the opening look dark even during daylight hours? I would assume that thin, cloudy ice would catch the light and look bright, while the hole wouldn’t?
Also, if there is a heavy layer of snow on top or if the ice is very thick, wouldn’t everything look black from underneath?
If you fall through the ice and fail to reach the surface within 30 seconds, you are likely going to die. If you do get out, you have about 10 minutes to remove your wet clothes and find a way to get warm, or you’ll probably die anyway.
Cold water is incredibly dangerous, and avoiding it should be your main goal at all times.
You should also know that if your vehicle goes through the ice and the doors or windows won’t open, you can pull out the headrest and use the metal rods to break the glass. I probably should have made a separate post for this. But honestly, just avoid driving or walking on ice altogether.
To add to this, if you find someone unconscious in freezing conditions, call for help and perform CPR until you are physically unable to continue. The cold protects the body from the oxidative damage that usually happens at death, and people have been resuscitated even 2 hours after drowning in frozen rivers. EMTs often say ‘nobody is dead until they are warm and dead.’
CCR, or Continuous Compression Resuscitation, is nearly as effective as CPR and much simpler. Just push hard and fast in the middle of the chest.
AHA guidelines suggest compressing the chest 1.5 to 2 inches, which takes about 125 lbs of force for most adults. Use your body weight by bending at the hips so you don’t tire as quickly.
Aim for 100 to 120 compressions per minute. This matches the tempo of the song ‘Stayin’ Alive.’ Sing it if it helps you keep time.
Don’t worry about being perfect; any compressions are better than doing nothing. You might break some ribs, but keep going. Broken ribs are a fair trade for staying alive.