Minnesota Mixed Bag: Teen dies when ATV breaks through ice of northern Minnesota lake – Outdoor News
Walker, Minn. — The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reported Dec. 10 that the body of a drowning victim, an 18-year-old male, had been recovered from Blackwater Lake near Longville.
The victim was identified last week as Blake Herman, of Brainerd, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune. Another passenger on the ATV, Dylan Wheeler, of Longville, survived, the newspaper reported.
Cass County Sheriff Bryan Welk, in a news release, stated that on Dec. 9, at about 6 p.m., Cass County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch had received 911 emergency reports of two individuals that were traveling by ATV on the ice of Blackwater Lake in Woodrow Township and had broken through the lake’s ice.
According to the release, the location of the incident was calculated using 911 mapping technology. Responders and deputies arrived in the area, the release said, and located a 20-year-old male in the water. The man was rescued and transported to shore, where he was treated by EMS for exposure and hypothermia before being transported to a St. Cloud hospital via helicopter.
A search continued into the evening for the 18-year-old, but was unsuccessful. The search resumed the following day, and the victim’s body was recovered around 1 p.m., Dec. 10.
Assisting at the scene and with the rescue and search-recovery efforts were the Longville Fire Department, Lake Country First Responders, North Memorial Ambulance, North Memorial Air Care, Minnesota State Patrol, Department of Natural Resources, Walker Fire Dept., and the Lakes Area Dive Team, the sheriff’s office release said.
Herman’s family last week had initiated a gofundme.com page, stating, in part: “Blake was a bright young man with a kind heart and an infectious smile. He touched the lives of everyone he met, and his loss leaves a hole that can never be filled. As we navigate this painful time, we are coming together to support Blake’s family with the financial burden of funeral and memorial expenses.”
Visit www.gofundme.com and search for Blake Herman for more information and to contribute.
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ADDITIONS MADE TO ANNUAL STAND EXAM LIST
St. Paul — The DNR has posted additions to the FY25 Annual Stand Exam List and is accepting comments on these additions through Jan. 10. You can view the additions at mndnr.gov.
To provide the public with notification about additions to the Annual Stand Exam List, the Division of Forestry issues updates roughly every other month on the “annual plan additions” web page and sends notice to comment to the subscription list.
The DNR plans forest stands to be evaluated for potential timber harvest or other forest management actions on a 10-year basis. Each year a list of forest stands to be evaluated for harvest in support of forest and habitat management, called the Annual Stand Exam List, is released for public comment.
Direct comments or questions concerning annual plan additions to local area DNR Forestry offices or to forest resources planners at For. [email protected]. All comments will be read and considered.
REP. ANGIE CRAIG NAMED RANKING DEM ON HOUSE AGRICULTURAL COMMITTEE
St. Paul — On Tuesday, the U.S. House Democratic Caucus elected Minnesota Rep. Angie Craig, D-2nd District, as the ranking member of the House Agriculture Committee. Republicans have a slim majority in the U.S. House, but Craig’s role as ranking member will give her a position to influence federal farm and conservation program policy Craig begins her fourth term in Congress next month. In a press release on Tuesday, the Minnesota Farmers Unions said it looked forward to working with Craig in passing a Farm Bill.
2025 S.D. LICENSES AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE
Pierre, S.D. — The 2025 licenses are currently available for purchase.
This includes combination, fishing, small game, furbearer, and other 2025 licenses. Park entrance licenses for 2025 also are on sale.
New for 2025, the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Commission finalized a fee adjustment at its October meeting. These fees are now in effect. Some of the adjustments include establishment of nonresident park entrance licenses and a set fee at $60 single and $90 double; increase nonresident fishing licenses by $13; and increase nonresident small-game licenses by $21.
IOWA HUNTING, FISHING LICENSES FOR 2025 NOW ON SALE
Des Moines, Iowa — Resident hunters and anglers can buy 2025 resident hunting, fishing and other licenses on Dec. 15. Licenses purchased for 2024 expire Jan. 10. Download the GoOutdoorsIowa mobile app for iPhone and Android devices to buy and access your license information. Licenses are available at 600 locations across the state, and on the DNR website at www.iowadnr.gov/GoOutdoorsIowa
CORRECTIONS
A staffer incorrectly typed a word contained within a letter to the editor in the Dec. 13 edition of Outdoor News. The last paragraph of Doug Pitt’s letter entitled “Snow, wolves taking toll on white-tailed deer” should have read as such: “I ask this question: Knowing this problem, why in the world would the DNR issue any doe licenses in the areas of such low deer counts as they did this year and last year? Come on!”
The version that appeared in last week’s edition said “deer” instead of “doe.”
One other clarification from an astute reader: The reader’s note was regarding Ryan Rothstein’s Dec. 13 column, which referenced “copper rounds pushing 130 grains of powder.” The statement should’ve referenced 130-grain bullets.
Outdoor News regrets the errors.
