The City of Thunder Bay, Ontario, has temporarily closed its outdoor skating rinks following a weekend of unseasonably warm temperatures on March 8-9, 2026. Local officials decided to shut down the facilities to keep residents safe after the mild weather weakened the ice surfaces. The closure typically affects the city’s natural ice surfaces, while the refrigerated rink at Prince Arthur’s Landing often remains open due to its ability to withstand warmer conditions.
Residents are advised to stay off the ice at all community rinks until further notice. These outdoor spaces are typically open from the middle of December until mid-March, but the exact dates change every year based on the local weather.
According to the city’s Parks & Open Spaces Division, staff are monitoring weather forecasts and plan to reopen the skating surfaces later in the week of March 9, 2026. Reopening the rinks will depend on whether the weather gets cold enough to make the ice safe again.
Updates on which rinks are safe to use are being posted to the city’s official social media page. Residents can also check the official outdoor rink map to see the current status of facilities in their neighbourhood.
