Glen Ellyn Park District workers had their hands full the morning of Jan. 24 when a plow truck went through the ice on Lake Ellyn.

The truck, which was clearing snow to make way for the Lake Ellyn skate rink, went into the freezing water at about 9 a.m. when it hit a soft patch of ice near the bank.

“When I plowed the snow off of it, it was weak and I fell through,” said Park District employee Paul Pitts, who wasn’t hurt when his truck went through the ice.

Pitts and several other Park District employees spent the better part of the afternoon trying to fish the truck out of the icy water.

Such accidents are not uncommon. Pitts said a truck goes into the lake about once a winter as crews turn Lake Ellyn into a skate rink.

At around 2:30 p.m., after several hours of work and a few setbacks, Park District employees were able to drag the truck out of the lake.

Pitt, a 10-year employee of the Park District, stayed upbeat about the mess, even after he sank into the lake when trying to clear ice from around the truck.

“What can you do? You can’t get upset,” he said. “No one got hurt, and that’s the important thing.”

It is not clear yet how much damage was sustained, but it appeared minimal at first glance once the truck was pulled from the icy water.