The St. Louis County Sheriff’s Department is asking for the public’s help in locating a Duluth woman. Around midnight sheriff’s officials received a report of a woman wrapped in a blanket asking for help in the 5100 block of Gnesen Road in the city of Rice Lake. A vehicle belonging to 24-year-old Chassie Lee was located about a half mile away and had sustained major damage. She was last seen walking southbound on Gnesen road. Ground and air searches have turned up nothing so far. Anyone with information is asked to call 9-1-1.
A 20-year-old woman was found on fire Thursday afternoon near the Lake Superior College Fire Training Center in Duluth. According to police, the fire was put out by a passerby who then called authorities. Police say the incident was not an accident at the school, and is being investigated as a crime. A Lake Superior College spokesperson says the woman was not on LSC property and is not affiliated with the college in any way. The woman was taken to a hospital with life-threatening burns. Anyone with information is asked to call 9-1-1.
The man struck by a semi Wednesday afternoon near University of Minnesota campus died Thursday from his injuries. 46-year-old Charles Coleman of Brooklyn Center was attempting to cross the intersection when he reportedly struck the side of the semi and was knocked underneath its trailer. Family members said Coleman worked as a cook at the university and was on his way home after the lunch shift, likely on his way to the light rail station. The driver of the semi is cooperating with authorities.
Authorities have identified the man killed in a crash in Blaine Wednesday night. 19-year-old Mohamed Amin of Blaine died after the car he was driving collided with a semi truck. Two passengers in Amin’s vehicle a twelve-year-old and a 13-year-old are hospitalized with critical injuries. The semi driver, a 41-year-old man from St. Paul, was not hurt and is cooperating with authorities.
Plans for a giant ice palace in St. Paul for the annual Winter Carnival may have fallen through but another city says it will build one of its own. Organizers in Detroit Lakes say they will harvest enough ice to build a two-story structure measuring 60 by 30 feet. The ice from Detroit Lake, south of the city, was set to go to St. Paul in the first place so now it will be used for the annual Polar Fest celebration in February.
There is news that a two-year old boy in southern California died this year after being crushed by an Ikea dresser. The accident happened in the same way a toddler was killed in Apple Valley in 2016. That makes eight children who have died as a result of the Malm dresser which was recalled. Ikea has been offering refunds and an anchor kit for customers, while paying out more than 50-million dollars in legal settlements.
The National Weather Service has released its winter outlook for the U-S. Three-quarters of Minnesota is forecast to have wetter months than normal ahead. Southwestern and west-central Minnesota will likely remain normal. As for temperature, while meteorologists think most of the country will be warmer than normal, Minnesota is forecast to be normal, with the exception of northwestern counties, which are expected to cooler than normal.