ABOUT 500 fishermen were stranded on a large ice floe off the island of Sakhalin in far eastern Russia, officials said today. Rescuers had managed to take 15 people off the ice using motorboats, Russia's emergency situations ministry said. A strong wind was pushing the floe out to sea and officials were preparing to use a hovercraft and helicopters in the rescue effort, Russian news agencies reported. Despite repeated warnings from authorities, fishing through holes in the ice remains popular in Russia and fishermen often stray far from the shores of lakes and seas.