PORT CLINTON, Ohio — Three men riding an all-terrain vehicle on frozen Lake Erie were killed Tuesday when it plunged through the ice.

        Their names were not immediately released.

        Divers found the bodies in the water about 3:30 p.m., but they were not sure when the men fell, said Ottawa County Deputy Sheriff Roger Garn.

        “Someone noticed there were tracks leading to a hole and that there was an ice chest floating in the water,” Deputy Garn said.

        The hole was about the size of four parking spaces, he said. The ice was only a couple of inches thick, and there were many areas of open ice.

        The bodies were found about a mile north of Middle Bass Island.

        The men apparently were going ice fishing, Deputy Garn said. Fishing poles and tackle boxes were found near the bodies.

        Authorities said that there was a morning snowstorm and that visibility was low. Deputy Garn said it's possible the men may have become disoriented and driven into an unsafe area of ice.

        Deputy Garn said that even though much of the ice on the lake is unstable, there still were dozens of anglers on the ice.

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