Star Tribune
Sullivan Lake in Lake County is no more after a century-old dam fails in heavy rains
DULUTH — A northeast Minnesota lake drained to its muddy bottom in last week’s torrential rain, pushing its water through an already-swollen river basin.
Lake County’s Sullivan Lake, next to a popular campground about 25 miles north of Two Harbors, nearly emptied after water broke through its small 124-year-old dam, constructed of wood, stone and dirt.
The disappearance of an entire lake “is crazy,” and Lake County is looking into what happens next, said Matt Pollmann, its emergency management director.
The lake was about 45 acres and seven feet deep at its greatest depth. Its contents added to the deluge filling the Cloquet River, but it only increased its power slightly, said Ketzel Levens, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Duluth. At its peak, water flowed at a rate of 6,200 cubic feet per second, and the lake water contributed up to 5% of that flow, she said, making it a “drop in a much larger bucket.”
The U.S. Forest Service owns the old logging dam and will work with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources on whether to rebuild it, or let the body of water return to its natural state as a channel, said Joy Vandrie, with the Superior National Forest. She said that when dammed, it is technically a reservoir, and not a lake.
Records show the 7-foot-tall dam was built in 1900. Because it is classified as a low hazard dam, it’s inspected once a decade, Vandrie said, and was last inspected in 2017. A low-hazard classification means physical, economic and environmental harm is minimal if it fails. Many old wooden logging dams remain across the federal forest land.
The Forest Service said the dam failed without risk to downstream property owners.
In a press release, St. Louis and Lake counties said the failure of the dam could have increased flooding in the Brimson and Island Lake areas.
“It’s almost like there was an extra surge that came down with that water,” said St. Louis County Sheriff Gordon Ramsay in a separate interview. “The one thing it’s brought to light is there are a lot of dams on lakes and bodies of water that we should probably be doing a better job of monitoring.”
Dave Anderson is a musician who lives on Indian Lake in Brimson, Minn., about 10 miles from Sullivan Lake. The home he’s owned for nearly five decades filled with 40 inches of water beginning Wednesday morning, as the Cloquet River emptied into Indian Lake. Others in the area received some damage, but nothing like his property, he said. He wonders if the dam failure made things worse.
“It was coming up about an inch every 10 minutes,” Anderson said, maxing out his rain gauge. “I’ve never seen water rise like that in my life. I was racing to get stuff out of the water.”
Neighbors arrived to help him move as many possessions as possible to higher ground, including precious guitars, amps and other musical accessories. But his solid pine floors are a loss, he said, as are his appliances. His garage and other outbuildings filled with water and his septic system backed up into the house.
“Most everything is gone,” he said, and now his time is filled with “frustrating phone calls” with his insurance company and others as he seeks help.
Levens said the 5-7 inches of rain that fell in six hours or less beginning June 18 pushed the Cloquet River even higher than it rose during the flooding of 2012.
“It was a pretty major flooding event,” she said.
“It’s a combination of fight where you need to fight, and that includes everything — legal action, a bullhorn, peaceful protests and civil disobedience,” Murphy said of his approach. “And then at the same time, we can’t close off the opportunity to find common ground.”
Some of the first maneuvering by top Democrats began this past week, when Pritzker and Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado announced the formation of a group called Governors Safeguarding Democracy. Its unveiling followed several days of behind-the-scenes drama, as several fellow Democratic governors declined to join the group, at least for now.
A draft news release listed six other governors as members of the coalition led by Pritzker and Polis. But four of them — Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Maura Healey of Massachusetts, Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania — declined to join, according to people briefed on the discussions. Govs. Tony Evers of Wisconsin and Josh Green of Hawaii were also named on the draft news release, but neither has yet agreed to join the group.
Alex Gough, a spokesperson for Pritzker, said that the group had been working with 20 governors’ offices but that “not all of these governors wish to be named publicly at this time for understandable reasons, including the potential threats states are facing.”
Murphy said he had been approached to join the Pritzker group, as well, but declined, explaining that he was focused on New Jersey until his term ends in early 2026. He said he had also declined to run to lead the Democratic National Committee after holding a series of conversations about entering that race, which is expected to have its first candidates enter by early next week.
The election to lead the party, expected to be held sometime in early 2025, will be an insular contest decided by the 447 members of the DNC. Those who have had conversations with party members and prominent Democrats about running include Ken Martin, the Minnesota Democratic chair; Ben Wikler, the Wisconsin Democratic chair; Michael Blake, a former New York state Assembly member; Mitch Landrieu, a former Biden administration official who also served as mayor of New Orleans; and Stacey Abrams, who twice ran for governor of Georgia.
When Nasrieen Habib launched a hiking group for Muslim women in 2022, she didn’t know if anyone would show up.
Nine women responded to her initial social media post. “And we have never stopped since,” Habib said.
In the two years since, Hiking Hijabie — and an offshoot for families, Hiking Ummah — have grown into a local force, drawing more than 870 participants for outdoors activities including hikes, camping, kayaking and even snow tubing. The mantra is “rain or shine, we are hiking,” Habib said.
The energetic Minneapolis mom of two has launched an umbrella organization, Amanah Recreational Projects, to channel social and outdoors ventures for Muslims, including Hiking Hijabie, Hiking Ummah, EcoJariyah, and Chai and Chat.
She said her goal is to create a safe space for Muslim families and the whole community to spend time outdoors. Habib said adapting to cold weather can be challenging or even overwhelming for many newcomers, especially those from warmer places like Somalia.
“Winter activities are actually pretty fun,” Habib said. “I want to make sure my community feels safe and comfortable in their environment, where they can engage in physical activities and enjoy the outdoors.”
The idea of women hiking by themselves is also unusual in the Somali community, so the group is pushing new boundaries.
Habib, 38, spent her early years in Somalia and Uganda, then grew up in the subtropical temps of Houston, Texas.
Authorities are piecing together details of a suspected murder in or around Pine County.
Jail records show the Pine County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 31-year-old man Friday on suspicion of second-degree murder. The Star Tribune typically does not name suspects until they are charged.
It was unclear when the incident occurred or whether it occurred in Pine County. Authorities said they planned to release more details after investigators gather information.
Pine County is about 60 miles north of the Twin Cities.
This is a developing story. Check back with startribune.com for more information.
