Frantic Search Underway in BWCA After Two Canoes Go Over Waterfall

A scary situation is developing in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area after two canoes were reported going over Curtain Falls and are still missing.

The St. Louis County Sheriff's Office was called to the scene of the water emergency on Iron Lake in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area on Saturday, May 18th just after 7 PM, a caller reported that 2 canoes had gone over the waterfall with one individual severely injured, and two other paddlers missing.

A Department of Natural Resources helicopter extracted the injured canoeist, Kyle Thomas Sellers, age 47 from Ham Lake, he was taken to Essentia Duluth and is being treated for serious but not life-threatening injuries.

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Four days later, the St. Louis County Rescue Squad continues to search for the missing canoeists, 41-year-old Jesse Melvin Haugen of Cambridge and 40-year-old Reis Melvin Grams of Lino Lakes.

Search teams are using remotely operated vehicles and drones to search for the missing canoeist, but they say that rapid water flow is making search conditions very difficult. Despite the conditions, they say that teams are continuing to push forward and expand the search area as needed.

There are several organizations assisting the St. Louis County Rescue Squad in the search and extraction, including North Air Care, Virginia Fire Department, the Minnesota Department of natural Resources, the Minnesota Air Rescue Team, and the US Forest Service.

Hopefully this story has a happy ending, the Sheriff's Department says that, "Updates will be provided as they become available as the search progresses".