With the Maine Winterfest & Derby 2007 taking place this weekend, Casco Fire Chief John Small said his department is poised to ensure the safety of the large crowd, expected to number in the tens of thousands.
“Hopefully, we don’t have to do anything except stand there,” said Small.
This year’s derby will be based out of the Point Sebago Resort in South Casco. Small said eight to 10 firefighters from his all-volunteer force will be on hand at any given time throughout the weekend.
Small said dive teams will be standing by in the event that someone ends up on the wrong side of the ice. Cumberland County will also be providing its cold water rescue team just in case.
There will be two fire trucks stationed at Point Sebago, and Small said a snowmobile-towed rescue sled and a raft will be there just in case.
The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife will have an air boat on hand, which is a sled that can go on the ice and water. It uses a fan for locomotion like a hovercraft.
Small said his department was on hand during last year’s motorcycle race and there were no incidents.
“This should be a fun, safe weekend,” he said.
The ice is 10 inches thick on Harmon’s Beach, located in Standish between the Big and Lower bays, according to Carroll Cutting, owner of Jordan’s Store in Casco. Over in Jordan Bay the ice is 12 to 15 inches in most places, according to Dale Southard of Tailfeathers Upland Store in Raymond.
While the surface of Big Bay is still liquid, ice in the coves is about 12 inches thick, according to Mike Piper of Point Sebago Resort.
As of Wednesday morning, more than 1,000 people had signed up for Saturday’s ice fishing derby, according to event organizer Tom Noonan. He said the new Kid’s Derby had about 400 registrations at the time same.
“People wait until the last minute on this stuff,” said Noonan, who said this year’s volume of registration is comparable to last year. “We typically do hundreds and hundreds of registrations on Saturday morning.”
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