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Snowmobiler hits pickup on Minnesota lake during late-night gathering; passenger badly hurt

February 4, 2019 at 1:15PM
Travis VanElsberg
Travis VanElsberg (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

A passenger on a snowmobile was severely injured when it crashed into a parked pickup truck early Sunday on an east-central Minnesota lake, authorities said.

The incident occurred about 12:10 a.m. amid a large gathering on East Rush Lake a few miles west Rush City, according to the Chisago County Sheriff's Office.

The passenger, Zoe Olivia Reider, 22, was taken to a hospital in the pickup driven by someone who was part of the group, the Sheriff's Office added.

The snowmobiler, Travis Dane VanElsberg, 22, of nearby North Branch, was jailed on suspicion of criminal vehicular operation and drunken driving.

Pickup driver Grace Marie Olund, 22, of North Branch, also was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving.

Neither VanElsberg nor Reider, of North Branch, had on helmets at the time of the crash, the Sheriff's Office said.

The three were among "a large gathering of friends, most believed to be staying in fish houses," said Sheriff's Sgt. Steve Pouti.

Reider was taken to a nearby hospital then transferred to the University of Minnesota Medical Center, where she was in critical condition Sunday night.

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VanElsberg was involved in another gathering about 13 months earlier, this one in Wyoming, Minn., that also involved alcohol and drew police attention.

Police responding to a noise complaint found about 150 people at the party. Some of the group of mostly underage drinkers tried to flee.

VanElsberg barricaded himself in an upstairs room before diving headfirst out of the room's closed window, police said in an account released soon afterward.

He was arrested at his home for underage drinking, police added.

about the writer

about the writer

Paul Walsh

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Paul Walsh is a general assignment reporter at the Minnesota Star Tribune. He wants your news tips, especially in and near Minnesota.

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