Fire Island ferry service halted by huge chunks of ice on Great South Bay

Fire Island ferries were halted until further notice Wednesday due to large swaths of ice that covered most of the Great South Bay.

Bay Shore-based Fire Island Ferries Inc. had to halt service due to icy conditions that prevented ships from going across the bay to western Fire Island communities from Kismet to Ocean Bay Park.

Ferry service was briefly halted by ice last week, but the arctic blast of cold air this week has cast a sheet of ice over most of the bay, freezing and becoming thicker with the shifting tides, ferry captains and environmental experts said.

It is the first time the entire Great South Bay has frozen significantly since 2018, according to the National Weather Service. 

"Water takes longer to cool down and heat up than land does," said meteorologist James Tomasini. "Even if we have a day with highs in the mid-30s it’s not like everything is going to melt."

The freezing temperatures are forecast to last through early next week, when boat captains said they hope the ice will break enough to resume service.

"Today it was 18 degrees, and it continues to make ice," said Morgan Mooney, a ferryboat captain for Fire Island Ferries. "Freight boats are still running and it will be a game-time decision to make it to the dock."

The ferry service shuttles residents to check on their homes or contractors who are doing work on Fire Island during the winter months. Freight boats, which are heavier and better able to maneuver through ice, deliver goods to the island as well as packages from Amazon and other stores. 

But freight service on Wednesday will be limited to Saltaire, Fair Harbor and Ocean Beach, according to the ferry service.

The Sayville Ferry Service canceled last Friday due to the ice but resumed its normal winter schedule through the weekend, said manager Bill Jacobs. He said icy conditions may make it difficult to run ferries with the bay frozen over this week.

"The tide can shift ice shelves that freeze on top of existing ice," Jacobs said. He said when saltwater freezes, it drains the salt, causing the fresh water on the surface to freeze into a harder ice. The only ships able to cut through ice belong to the Coast Guard, he said.

"This ice is thick now and it has not hit above 30 since Sunday. The ice doesn’t dissipate immediately, and it’s frozen all the way," Jacobs said. "The ice is shifting east to west with the tide. There might be open spots, but the ice chunks together and it’s difficult to judge to get through really thick ice." 

Year-round residents on Fire Island are still able to access their homes and reach the South Shore of Long Island through driving permits that can connect to Robert Moses State Park. School bus service was also not affected.

"For us, it doesn’t really have an impact because we have a year-round driving permit," said Lauren Chenault, who has lived in Ocean Beach for about 10 years. "If the freight boat gets canceled, that could cause a problem."

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.