Search and recovery operations at a "standstill" due to weather Wednesday, continue Thursday, for two missing canoeists in the BWCAW
May 23, 2024 08:40AM ● By Content Editor
Photo: Scott Rodgerson
By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - May 23, 2024
The search for two missing canoeists in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness enters its 5th day. On Wednesday afternoon, the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office said that the search and recovery operations were at a "standstill" due to weather, but were expected to resume Thursday morning. Despite the poor weather, the St. Louis County Rescue Squad said they are still in 24-hour operation mode.
With clear weather in the forecast for the next 24-36 hours, additional search operations will be added. In a Facebook post from Wednesday evening, the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office said that more personnel will be flown in, and Anderson's Canoe Outfitters will be assisting by guiding crews by canoe into Iron Lake to Curtain Falls. These teams will join crews already in the area to expand search and recovery efforts.
The St. Louis County Rescue Squad also reminded those planning to recreate this Memorial Day weekend (and beyond) to be safe on the water and in the woods:
"Friends, there's a holiday coming up, and many of you will be hitting the woods and the water to recreate. If you're heading out, there are three things we'd like you to tattoo on your brains. First, wear your life jacket. Don't sit on it, strap it to the thwart, or lay it on the bottom...wear it. Second, save the alcohol for the fire ring back at camp. Alcohol is present in more than half the watercraft accidents, and 80 percent of the fatalities. We love an amber-colored beverage as much as the next guy, but don't imbibe in the boat...save it for the war stories at the end of the day. Finally, don't suffer from "Get-there-itis." If you find yourself wind- or wave-blown, lay up on shore, build a fire, and wait for the winds to die down. Expedition-grade hikers and paddlers certainly want to stick to their itinerary timeline, but sometimes Mother Nature has other ideas. To try to force the issue invites disaster. Lay up and chill out."
Jesse Melvin Haugen, 41, of Cambridge, and Reis Melvin Grams, 40, of Lino Lakes were fishing in a canoe with another group on Iron Lake at the top of Curtain Falls, when one had an issue and the other went to try and assist. Both canoes went over the falls. Two people, Kyle Thomas Sellers, 47, from Ham Lake, and Erik Michael Grams, 43, from Ham Lake, also went over the falls in their canoe but were found and rescued. Sellers was airlifted to a hospital in Duluth with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. A fifth person, Jared Jay Lohse, 33, from Cambridge, MN, was with one of the groups but not involved in the incident. Multiple sources report that the group was anchored at the top of the falls, and were familiar with the area.
The search for two missing canoeists in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness enters its 5th day. On Wednesday afternoon, the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office said that the search and recovery operations were at a "standstill" due to weather, but were expected to resume Thursday morning. Despite the poor weather, the St. Louis County Rescue Squad said they are still in 24-hour operation mode.
With clear weather in the forecast for the next 24-36 hours, additional search operations will be added. In a Facebook post from Wednesday evening, the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office said that more personnel will be flown in, and Anderson's Canoe Outfitters will be assisting by guiding crews by canoe into Iron Lake to Curtain Falls. These teams will join crews already in the area to expand search and recovery efforts.
The St. Louis County Rescue Squad also reminded those planning to recreate this Memorial Day weekend (and beyond) to be safe on the water and in the woods:
"Friends, there's a holiday coming up, and many of you will be hitting the woods and the water to recreate. If you're heading out, there are three things we'd like you to tattoo on your brains. First, wear your life jacket. Don't sit on it, strap it to the thwart, or lay it on the bottom...wear it. Second, save the alcohol for the fire ring back at camp. Alcohol is present in more than half the watercraft accidents, and 80 percent of the fatalities. We love an amber-colored beverage as much as the next guy, but don't imbibe in the boat...save it for the war stories at the end of the day. Finally, don't suffer from "Get-there-itis." If you find yourself wind- or wave-blown, lay up on shore, build a fire, and wait for the winds to die down. Expedition-grade hikers and paddlers certainly want to stick to their itinerary timeline, but sometimes Mother Nature has other ideas. To try to force the issue invites disaster. Lay up and chill out."
Jesse Melvin Haugen, 41, of Cambridge, and Reis Melvin Grams, 40, of Lino Lakes were fishing in a canoe with another group on Iron Lake at the top of Curtain Falls, when one had an issue and the other went to try and assist. Both canoes went over the falls. Two people, Kyle Thomas Sellers, 47, from Ham Lake, and Erik Michael Grams, 43, from Ham Lake, also went over the falls in their canoe but were found and rescued. Sellers was airlifted to a hospital in Duluth with serious but non-life-threatening injuries. A fifth person, Jared Jay Lohse, 33, from Cambridge, MN, was with one of the groups but not involved in the incident. Multiple sources report that the group was anchored at the top of the falls, and were familiar with the area.