Star Tribune
Large fire at 3-story Minneapolis apartment building injures residents, firefighters
A fire in an apartment complex after dark Tuesday in south Minneapolis caused a number of injuries and sent firefighters to balconies to rescue two residents, officials said.
The blaze broke out about 10:20 p.m. at the three-story Woodhaven Apartments building on S. Lyndale Avenue between W. 60th and 61st streets, the Fire Department said.
Roughly 25 to 30 apartment units were deemed uninhabitable, fire officials said. The Red Cross was called to assist those residents.
Fire crews needed several hours to extinguish the flames. Fire officials have not released a preliminary cause for the fire.
The Fire Department said the nearly 50-year-old privately operated building did not have a sprinkler system, and its standpipes failed to work. Standpipe systems give firefighters an ample source of water with a burning building.
The building is owned by Centerspace, based in Minot, N.D., and has other rental properties throughout the Twin Cities, and other nearby communities in Minnesota, as well as in Colorado, Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota. A message was left with Centerspace seeking details about the building’s history.
According to the Fire Department:
Fire crews arrived to find smoke and flames coming from two balconies on the first and second floors on the east side of the building, and a car caught fire in a nearby parking lot. Flames also made their way to the third floor.
Some residents needing assistance due to disabilities were among those who firefighters helped get out of the building, including two occupants who were rescued from their balconies by firefighters on ladders. A third resident was led out from a smoke-filled hall.
All three were taken by emergency responders to a nearby hospital “in stable condition for further medical evaluations,” a Fire Department statement read.
Three firefighters also received medical evaluation at the scene for overexertion, and one was treated for a dislocated thumb. A cat died in the fire, officials said.
Star Tribune
Judge gives driver year in jail for being drunk, fatally hitting man in Minnesota street
A driver was given a year in jail Wednesday for being drunk when he fatally hit a man in the street near St. Cloud.
Tyler J. Nies, 26, of Sartell, Minn., was sentenced in Benton County District Court after pleading guilty to criminal vehicular homicide in connection with the crash shortly before 11 p.m. on July 28 in Sauk Rapids near the intersection of N. Benton Drive and N. 8th Street that killed Kevin D. Oehmen, 47, of Sauk Rapids.
Judge Robert Raupp opted for the year in jail while setting aside a 5¾-year term. Raupp also ordered Nies to serve 10 years’ probation, perform 80 hours of community work service, complete a chemical assessment attend a victim impact panel, abstain from mood-altering chemicals and stay away from bars.
According to the criminal complaint:
An officer at the scene noticed that Nies smelled of alcohol. Nies initially said he had one beer before driving his pickup. A preliminary breath test by the officer measured Nies’ blood alcohol content at 0.129%, more than 1 1⁄2 times the legal limit in Minnesota.
Upon further questioning, Nies said that before driving he drank three beers, which were about 16 ounces each.
Nies told police he was heading north on Benton Drive in the right-hand lane and suddenly saw a man walking in the grassy area next to the curb “like he was going to cross the road,” the complaint read. Police Chief Perry Beise added that Oehmen was on a street with no marked crosswalk.
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A small fire of three to five acres has been detected in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, but it was holding in place as of Wednesday morning.
The fire was discovered Tuesday and is located on an island in Wood Lake, north of County Road 18, according to a news release from the Superior National Forest. The area is to the northeast of Ely.
The release said the fire was smoldering and holding in place due to good overnight relative humidity levels and light to no wind. However, Superior National Forest is experiencing drought conditions and above average temperatures, and increased winds are expected later this week.
The Forest Service is using aircraft to cool the fire and initiate suppression actions. Firefighters are also engaging with the fire, but ground conditions are difficult, the release said.
“This is an ever-changing event, and we ask the traveling public to stay away from the area and seek alternate routes,” the release said.
The fire is burning among timber and heavy, dead balsam fire, the release said. The origin has not yet been investigated, but it is believed to be human caused.
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