20 people stranded on ice floe in Canadian Arctic await rescue aircraft

ARCTIC BAY, Nunavut – Police say a group of tourists on an ice floe in the Canadian Arctic will likely be stranded there until early Wednesday morning.

They were set adrift when a 50-kilometer (30-mile) long slab of ice broke away from Baffin Island sometime between Monday night and early Tuesday and floated several kilometers (miles) out to sea.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police spokeswoman Cpl. Yvonne Niego said Tuesday that the 20 people trapped on the ice floe include local guides, and Canadian and foreign tourists. They have a camp, shelter and supplies.

Niego says 10 hunters who were also trapped managed to cross over onto land after the chunk of ice split and their end floated close to shore Tuesday afternoon.

The floe the tourists are on remains afloat.