Police: Snowmobiler Dies After Hitting Open Water

BAYPORT, Minn. (AP/Minn.) — A snowmobiler has died after driving into open water on the St. Croix River in eastern Minnesota.

According to the Washington County Sheriff's office, a 22-year-old man went through the ice at about noon Saturday in Bayport, which is a mile south of Stillwater.

NewsRadio 830 WCCO's Susie Jones Reports

The man was unconscious when he was pulled from the water, and later died at Regions Hospital in St. Paul. He was estimated to have been in the water for at least 20 minutes.

He says the man broke through the ice near the Xcel Energy Allen S. King power plant, which has a warm-water feed into the river.

Starry says the snowmobiler went right past the thin ice warning signs.

The Ramsey County Medical Examiner's Office and the Washington County Sheriff's Office are investigating the incident. The victim's identity has yet to be release.

So far this winter, at least three Twin Cities-area residents have died when their vehicles broke through ice.

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