A Faribault man was struck by a train last night. Faribault Police and Fire responded to the call just after 8pm. They were called to the railroad bridge that crosses the Straight River approximately 100 yards north of the old public works site at 601 1 st Ave NE. Chief Bohlen said, the initial investigation indicates that 42 year old Emmett Crosby was sitting on the bridge when a train approached, striking Crosby and knocking him off the bridge and down an embankment. Police and Fire personnel were able to remove Crosby from the area and he was transported for his injuries. Though serious, he is
expected to survive. Initial findings indicate that alcohol may have been a factor with the pedestrian and his choice to sit on an active train bridge. The investigation is ongoing and charges are being considered against the pedestrian. Chief Andy Bohlen commented, “The first responders did an incredible job to remove the injured victim from the difficult terrain. We also caution everyone about choices made around active rail lines and urge pedestrians to give trains a large amount of room for operation.”
Fish house thieves
Opportunities abound on the ice, but not for catching fish. It’s thieves breaking into fish houses. Rice County Sheriff Troy Dunn told KYMN they had at least 5 calls in the French Lake area this week. He cautioned people not to leave their valuables in their fish houses if you’re not there. It’s just a target. He added that those big locks are more a statement that says, “hey they must have expensive stuff in there”. It’s pretty easy to pop those locks. They’ll steal anything they can sell. Electronics, fishing tackle, gear, etc. Those items are generally not marked making it difficult to track them down. He suggested taking pictures of your items for identification purposes but the most important thing is to remove them if you’re not staying in the fish house. Dunn urged anyone who sees something suspicious to call them. Deputies don’t normally patrol the lakes unless they’re called. The DNR, however, does. He added that this isn’t the first report of fish house break ins but this was a very busy thief.
Stafford Rd gets a redo
Stafford Road in Dundas was a “turn back” from the State of Minnesota. It was used as a bypass while they worked on Hwy 3, meaning it came to the City in less than good shape and now, with more and more traffic, City Administrator John McCarthy commented that the road is in tough shape, in particular the edges. Council approved reconditioning the road and will “do a couple of other things”. Including the gravel area that looks like a part of Gleason Rd but isn’t actually a street. It will be brought up to “street standard”. A neighborhood meeting will be held next Thursday to tell them about the project and get feedback. They plan to start construction in mid summer. The project shouldn’t take long. Mayor Glenn Switzer added that there are a couple of smaller areas along that stretch between Frandsen Bank and Furniture to Go that could be built up, but there will be no building on the bluff. It’s a protected area.
Caucus locations – NOTE time change for Republican Caucus – doors open at 6pm
Caucuses are an opportunity for Political parties to discuss issues, choose delegates and alternates, choose party leadership, and vote in Straw Polls. Caucuses are taking place on Tuesday evening, February 6th. Rice County Republicans will be holding caucuses from 6 to 9pm at the Northfield High School, at Montgomery-Lonsdale Elementary East School and at the Faribault High School. Check their website for any further details. The Rice County DFL caucuses will be held from 6:30 to 10pm at the Northfield Middle School, St. Olaf in Buntrock Commons, Carleton’s Weitz Center, Forest Township Town Hall and the Faribault Middle School. I will have links to both of their websites on kymn.net at noon today.
