A motorcyclist was killed during a crash with a semi-truck Thursday morning in central Minnesota.
The crash happened at the intersection of Highway 28 and Highway 71 near Sauke Centre in Stearns County shortly before 9 a.m.
The Minnesota State Patrol says a 32-year-old man from St. Paul was driving a semi-truck east on Highway 28 while a man on a 1997 Harley Davidson motorcycle was stopped at the stop sign on Highway 28 behind a 2011 Chevy Silverado.
As the 22-year-old driver of the Chevy turned north onto Highway 71, the semi hit the motorcycle and then the Chevy, according to the crash report.
The state patrol says the 63-year-old motorcyclist from Glenwood, Minnesota, died.
Riley Moser is a digital producer who covers breaking news and feature stories for CBS Minnesota. Riley started her career at CBS Minnesota in June 2022 and earned an honorable mention for sports writing from the Iowa College Media Association the same year.
The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office says the boy, identified as Alexander Mick, was run over by a trolley wagon being pulled by a tractor in St. Augusta at the Horror Haunted Hayride on Oct. 12.
Investigators provided an update on Tuesday, saying Mick had been a volunteer at the event. He was part of a group whose job was to frighten riders being pulled through the cornfield.
Alexander Mick
Teri Mick
The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office says no one observed how the accident happened but investigators do not believe criminal charges will be filed.
As a result of the incident, the remaining nights of the 2024 Harvest of Horror were canceled, organizers said.
Riley Moser is a digital producer who covers breaking news and feature stories for CBS Minnesota. Riley started her career at CBS Minnesota in June 2022 and earned an honorable mention for sports writing from the Iowa College Media Association the same year.
PAYNESVILLE, Minn. — A Stearns County family is counting their blessings after surviving Saturday night’s storm.
Zenner Farms is located about 7 miles north of Paynesville. Around 8:30 Saturday evening, high winds ripped through their home and buildings.
“It’s the first time I’ve witnessed this. I was just trying to keep my family safe in the basement,” said Daniel Zenner.
No sooner did Zenner get his wife and five kids to the basement than the storm blew the windows out of their house.
“Thank God we went downstairs when we did. Because I would have had glass shards sticking into me,” said Zenner. “That was the scariest part for my kids was they thought the house was blowing away.”
Luckily the Zenners and their livestock were OK, but their farm took a beating. While the cattle barn roof collapsed, the machine shed roof was completely torn off.
Julie Manning
Not only did the storm take the roof off the machine shed and throw it into the woods, but the strong winds threw pieces of wood, like spears, into the ground.
It’s possible the sheer force of the storm came from the 95 mile an hour winds and tornado that hit Melrose just 15 miles away.
“Everything has a little damage, some has a lot of damage. It all has to be gone through again,” said Allan Zenner.
With harvest season a couple of months away, the Zenners estimate $15,000 worth of damage or more was done to their combine, and their corn is another story.
“It was perfect. The corn was the nicest in years. Now it’s not,” said Allan Zenner.
Still, they know it could have been even worse.
“It happened so fast, it was over so quick, I was just trying to keep the kids safe. That was what I was focused on,” said Daniel Zenner.
The Zenners said they are thankful for friends and neighbors who stopped by after the storm to check on their family and property.
John Lauritsen is an Emmy award-winning reporter from Montevideo, Minn. He joined WCCO-TV in late-July of 2007. Two days after he started, the Interstate 35W bridge collapsed.
MELROSE, Minn. — The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado touched down in a small central Minnesota town Saturday night.
The EF-1 tornado struck Melrose shortly before 9 p.m. with wind speeds reaching up to 95 mph.
WCCO
The National Weather Service is currently surveying the damage. No injuries have been reported so far.
Severe storms worked their way through Minnesota Saturday afternoon and evening, bringing hail and damaging winds to much of the state. The tornado in Melrose was the only one reported in Saturday’s storms.
This is a developing story. Updates will be posted as they become available.
Riley Moser is a digital producer who covers breaking news and feature stories for CBS Minnesota. Riley started her career at CBS Minnesota in June 2022 and earned an honorable mention for sports writing from the Iowa College Media Association the same year.
