Ice Fisherman Body Found in Bayfield Co.
On Saturday March 28th, 2015 at 11:18 PM, the Bayfield County Sheriff’s Office received a call from the wife of an overdue ice fisherman, Louis (Lou) Bickel, whom had gone ice fishing on Perch Lake, in the Town of Drummond in southern Bayfield County.
Bayfield County deputies arrived on the scene and discovered the vehicle owned by Bickel.
A check of the ice discovered that there was 15 feet of open water from the shore to the lake ice.
The Drummond Fire Department, the Namakagon Fire Department, and the Great Divide Ambulance service responded to the scene to assist in the search.
A hole in the ice was discovered about 50 yards off shore with some ice fishing equipment in and around it.
Due to the unsafe conditions of the ice, the search was postponed until the next morning.
On Sunday morning March 29th, at 10:00 A.M. Bickel’s body was discovered in about 18 feet of water in the same location as the ice fishing equipment that was located the previous night.
Assisting with the recovery was the Sawyer County Dive Team, GLIFWIC (Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission) wardens, the GLIFWIC wind sled, and the Drummond and Namakagon Fire Department personnel.
The deceased is Louis Bickel age 77 of Mason, Wisconsin.
