More than 100 anglers stranded on an ice floe in a Beltrami County lake were rescued Friday evening by emergency responders.
More than 100 anglers rescued after becoming stranded on Upper Red Lake ice floe
The Beltrami County Sheriff's Office said it had helped 122 people to safety; none were injured.
December 30, 2023 at 2:45AM
The Beltrami County Sheriff's office said Friday evening that responders from multiple local agencies helped evacuate 122 people on Upper Red Lake. The anglers had been stranded and unable to get to shore after the ice floe detached from the main ice Friday afternoon.
In a news release, Beltrami County Sheriff Jason Riggs said some of the stranded anglers were unaware of their predicament, so county emergency management officials sent out a public alert with instructions on where to evacuate.
No injuries were reported, although four people fell into the water when bystanders attempted to rescue them using a canoe.
The rescue comes one day after two men on an ATV went through the ice about 1 ½ miles north of the southern shore of Upper Red Lake. The men were uninjured, but they struggled to get out of the water and to safety. They alerted authorities but said they were stranded and couldn't get back to their resort, according to a news release from the Beltrami County Sheriff's Office.
Poor ice conditions around the state have contributed to two recent fatalities on other Minnesota lakes in recent weeks.
None of the boat’s occupants, two adults and two juveniles, were wearing life jackets, officials said.
