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On May 18 at approximately 7:21 p.m., the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office was dispatched to a report of a water emergency on Iron Lake in the BWCA. The caller reported that two canoes had gone over Curtain Falls during the incident, one party was badly injured and two individuals were missing.
At approximately 12:30 a.m., A DNR helicopter was used to extract one of the injured individuals and another uninjured party. The injured party was flown to Essentia Duluth with serious but not life-threatening injuries.
On May 19, 2024, search efforts resumed and were led by the St. Louis Co. Rescue Squad. An individual who was with the group, not involved in the incident, was flown out of the wilderness.
Governor Tim Walz Thursday authorized the Minnesota National Guard to transport equipment that will support search and rescue operations in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA). The assistance is authorized by Emergency Executive Order 24-04.
On May 18, four canoeists went over Curtain Falls inside the BWCA. Two members of the group have been rescued; however, two Minnesota residents remain missing.
“No one expects their vacation to turn to crisis. Yet, when four canoeists went over Curtain Falls in the BWCA, this became a reality,” said Governor Walz. “My family is intimately familiar with the fear and heartbreak these canoeists are feeling. We are praying for those involved and immensely grateful to everyone from the Sheriff’s office to the National Guard who are supporting this mission.”
The Minnesota National Guard will provide a CH-47 (Chinook) helicopter and four crew members for the mission in the BWCA. The crew has been requested to provide lift assets to transport a boat and additional equipment from the Ely airport to the area where two Minnesotans went missing. This mission is in response to a request for assistance from the St. Louis County Sheriff.
St. Louis County has released the names of the people involved in this event.
The St. Louis County Sheriff's Office and Rescue Squad continue search efforts on May 20 in the Curtain Falls area of Iron Lake in the BWCA. ROV (remote operated vehicles) and Drones will be utilized to search the area for the missing canoeists. Rapid water conditions are making for difficult searching conditions, however crews on the group continue to push forward to continue the search area and expand it as needed. The following are the involved parties including the names of the two missing canoeists.
#1 Missing Canoeist: Jesse Melvin HAUGEN Age:41 Address: Cambridge, MN
#2 Missing Canoeist: Reis Melvin GRAMS Age:40 Address: Lino Lakes, MN
#3 Injured Canoeist: Kyle Thomas SELLERS Age: 47 Address: Ham Lake, MN
#4 Involved Canoeist: Erik Michael GRAMS Age: 43 Address: Ham Lake, MN
#5 Group Member: Jared Jay LOHSE Age:33 Address: Cambridge, MN
