Kandiyohi County rescue squad members rescued during training exercise Sunday

Three members of the Kandiyohi County Rescue Squad were themselves rescued Sunday afternoon when a practice exercise didn’t go as planned.

On April 10, at 1:12 p.m., the Kandiyohi County Sheriff’s Office got a report of an overturned boat on Green Lake, straight out from the Olde Mill Inn Resort. Multiple callers indicated three occupants out of the water and standing on top of the boat.

The victims were Kandiyohi County Rescue Squad members on a hovercraft ice water training operation at the time. The watercraft was being used in a training scenario when the operator was navigating across the lake ice as it was approaching open water. When the rescue boat hit the water at an angle, it flipped over and landed upside down. The boat’s occupants were able to get out from under the boat to safety.

The three Rescue Squad members were transported to Rice Hospital with minor injuries.

The Sheriff’s Office was assisted by Spicer and New London Fire Departments, New London Ambulance, Kandiyohi County Rescue Squad, Minnesota State Patrol, Minnesota DNR, Kandiyohi County Emergency Operations, and Willmar Crane Service.

The incident is currently under investigation by the Kandiyohi County Sheriff’s Office.