Storms with high winds have caused widespread damage in the Boundary Waters, and trapped at least two parties of campers under fallen trees.
A man and boy were rescued early Tuesday morning on Lac La Croix after a tree fell on their tent about 3 a.m., according to Northland News Center. The 13-year-old boy was having trouble breathing, and the 37-year-old man suffered a broken shoulder and arm.
A local outfitter rescued them and transported them by boat to the Crane Lake Portage, where rescuers took them to receive medical treatment.
Tuesday afternoon, the St. Louis County sheriff’s office told the Duluth News Tribune that a rescue was underway on Loon Lake, where two more campers were trapped under a tree. Undersheriff Dave Philips said a woman sufferered “pretty significant injuries’’ and a male victim remained trapped under a tree at the scene.
Paramedics from Crane Lake were at the scene, and U.S. Forest Service float planes were en-route from Ely to transport the victims out of the wilderness.
Philips said the 60-mile-per-hour wind gusts were reminiscent of the 1999 storm that blew down millions of trees in the wilderness.