Water Safety in North Dakota

For much of the year, North Dakota's water is frozen, and the biggest risk is going onto ice that is too thin. Check the ice yourself, as often as you can, every time. North Dakota Game and Fish says you take a risk any time you go onto the ice, because thickness is never the same everywhere. In summer, wear a life jacket on every boat and paddleboard.

North Dakota drowning and boating numbers

1.17 per 100,000

• Drowning: CDC puts North Dakota's average annual drowning death rate for 2018-2021 at 1.17 per 100,000 people (opens in a new tab), in the second-lowest band on its map.
• Boating: The U.S. Coast Guard counted 9 reportable recreational boating incidents in North Dakota in 2024, with 3 deaths and 8 injuries (opens in a new tab). Deaths by year: 1 in 2020, 2 in 2021, 1 in 2022, 2 in 2023 and 3 in 2024.

CDC counts drowning deaths of residents; the Coast Guard counts boating incidents, not deaths through the ice. See our North Dakota data page.

Ice safety

North Dakota Game and Fish's general rule of thumb for good ice:

The department's other ice warnings:

• Thickness varies. Look for clear blue ice. New ice is stronger than old ice. Drill test holes or use an ice chisel as you move out.
• Snow hides danger. Snow acts much like a blanket, insulating thin ice (opens in a new tab), and it can hide cracks, weak ice and open water.
• Objects weaken ice. Be careful near partly submerged trees, brush, embankments and structures. Ice forms more slowly in shallow water and where objects soak up sunlight.
• Temperature swings make ice expand and contract, creating cracks and pressure ridges.
• Vehicles: driving on ice early or late in the season is an "accident waiting to happen." Don't drive on ice at night or when it is snowing.

Carry an ice chisel and a pair of ice picks. See ice thickness safety.

If you fall through

Game and Fish's self-rescue steps:

• Turn toward the direction you came (opens in a new tab). The last place you stepped is the strongest ice.
• Put your hands and arms on the unbroken ice, kick your feet, and use your ice picks to pull yourself up.
• Once you're on the ice, roll away from the hole. Don't stand up.

If someone else falls in, keep calm and don't run out to them. You can go from rescuer to victim in a second. Reach them with a pole, board, rope or blanket, or throw a life jacket or an empty jug. Call 911. People who have been in cold water may seem fine at first but still need medical care. Read falling through ice and hypothermia after cold water.

Boating and paddling

• Boat North Dakota: this course is required for youth ages 12-15 who want to operate by themselves a boat or personal watercraft with at least a 10 horsepower motor (opens in a new tab). The home-study course and the paper manual and exam are free. North Dakota law does not allow anyone to operate a watercraft until age 12.
• Kids Don't Float: Game and Fish lists a Kids Don't Float course for ages 7 to 11 that teaches safe boating, hypothermia and how life jackets save lives.
• Paddlers: the department encourages anyone starting stand-up paddleboarding, kayaking or canoeing to take a free online paddle sports course.
• Life jackets: every boat needs a wearable life jacket for each person. Everyone on a personal watercraft, and anyone being towed, must wear one. The boating regulations (opens in a new tab) include extra rules for children 10 and younger.

This is a summary, not legal advice.

What you can do today

• Get an ice chisel and a pair of ice picks before ice season.
• Teach your family the Game and Fish thickness chart.
• Never drive onto ice at night, in snow, or early or late in the season.
• Sign up a 12- to 15-year-old for the free Boat North Dakota course.
• Learn the rescue rule: reach or throw, don't go.