Risky Behavior

Earlier this week…

From the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services:

Last night, firefighters responded to the 10800 block of Timber Line Lane in Ellicott City for the report of a dog who had fallen through the ice of a frozen pond.

Firefighters were able to quickly rescue and reunite the dog with his family.

In an attempt to rescue the pet prior to our arrival, one civilian had gotten into the water. That patient was evaluated by EMS and refused transport to the hospital.

As these cold temperatures continue, this is an important reminder of just how dangerous ice can be. If you have kids at home, talk to them about ice safety.

Falling through a frozen pond, lake, or river can kill you.

Image credit: Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services

We don’t often get this kind of extended cold snap. The idea of getting on the ice doesn’t just tempt pets, either. Several days after the dog rescue, a social media post showed humans out on Lake Elkhorn. The poster expressed concern.

The responses were mixed. Some were of the “don’t be a killjoy, let kids have their fun” variety. You know the kind.

I did it when I was little and nothing happened to me.

What stunned me were the other responses. These were people who had direct knowledge of people who had lost their lives from falling through the ice. Not, “I heard” or “I read” but actual friends or family members. These were occurrences within their own lifetimes.

If you saw kids playing with matches near a row of cars or a lot of dry brush, would you intervene? Or would you think, “let them have their fun!”

What is there about going out on the ice (or swimming in quarries) that makes some people forgo good sense? A healthy respect for the dangers involved doesn’t make you a killjoy. It makes you safer. It makes you someone trustworthy in potentially life threatening situations.

And yet I wonder if some of the folks who saw no problem with kids playing on the ice might find, say, a group of Black or Brown kids walking around their neighborhood to be cause for alarm and/or intervention from the authorities. I’m making no accusations in this particular case. But my years of observing local social media posts have been very informative when it comes to what people deem risky behavior. 

Who is just having fun? Who is up to no good? Food for thought, at least for me.

It is truly unlikely that anyone reading this is legitimately an expert in determining whether local bodies of water are frozen enough to be safe for recreational use. It’s also unlikely that any of us think that even one death or catastrophic injury is okay if it means that the general public is free to “have their fun.”

How rare is it that the ponds freeze over? Rare enough that we don’t talk to our kids about the dangers? Rare enough that we ourselves forget the dangers?

Maybe.

Village Green/Town² Comments