With the recent warm stretch coming to an end and many across the province looking to get outdoors to do some fishing, snowmobiling, or hiking, it's important to keep ice safety in mind.

The weather has been cold, but not cold enough according to Fire Chief Rod Montgomery. He says with the recent warm spell, it's better to be safe than sorry.

Moose Jaw Firefighters help save a deer that had fallen through the ice

"When in doubt I think the best rule is 'don't venture out on the ice'. Especially this time of year, in the spring and fall when you're not having consistent temperatures, be very very careful."

Chief Montgomery says your best bet is to wait until we have at least a week of consistent cold weather.

"I would say right now I would stay off the ice unless you know, and the only way to do that is maybe to auger a hole to see what kind of thickness you have. Certainly with the temperature fluctuation that we have now, I don't think it would end well for too many people if they went out on to the ice."

"[The ice needs to be]15 cm for walking or skating on it, 20 cm for bigger groups of people, 25 cm for snowmobiles, then you'll want even more thickness to bring a vehicle on to the ice."

If you do fall through the ice, Chief Montgomery says the best way to get out is to kick your legs to help pull yourself up, and to not stand up once you're out. You want to spread your weight and crawl off of the ice.

The Moose Jaw Fire Deptarment was called into action at the start of November to help save a deer that had fallen through the ice in Wakamow