A fire alarm at Northfield Middle School disrupted the arrival of most students on Thursday. 
Around 7:35 on Thursday morning, just as students in school buses started to arrive, the school’s head custodian notified the fire department that the boiler room had filled with smoke. Northfield Area Fire and Rescue Service Chief Tom Nelson said Assistant Chief Sean Simonson and Fire Captain Justin Raabolle, who works for the school district, arrived immediately to assess the situation. Nelson said the bigger event became the overflow of arriving students, however as the fire department and the police department have worked with the school district on how to handle all situations, he said things went as smoothly as possible.
“We don’t have a plan for a fire at that time of the morning,” said Northfield Superintendent of Schools Dr. Matt Hillmann, “but we have worked on these things quite a bit. The staff and the students knew what to do.” Hillmann said there were students who had already arrived at school along with teachers and school staff who were preparing for the beginning of the day, however, he said, after the fire alarm went off, the building was cleared in six minutes.
Nelson said based on the firefighters’ examination, a piece of paper that had been stuck in a smokestack caught fire, and landed on some unused roofing materials from last summer when the school was re-roofed, causing the tar in the materials to melt and consequently filled the boiler room with smoke.
Hillmann said the district was in communication with the families of the students throughout the event. In the end, school was delayed for about 15 minutes.
After the situation was deemed to be clear and the students were allowed into the school, Nelson addressed the school during the morning announcements.
“I explained to them what had happened,” he said, “and then told them that situations like this are why their moms always tell them to wear a coat.”
One student was taken to the hospital when he slipped on some ice and hit his head. Both Nelson and Hillmann said no one else was hurt.
Extra Law enforcement patrols looking for distracted driving in April
April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, and law enforcement officers and safe driving advocates are reminding drivers to keep
their eyes, and their minds, on the road.
This month, Minnesota law enforcement, including Rice County officers and Sheriff’s deputies, have scheduled extra patrols to look for motorists who are distracted.
Distracted driving doesn’t just mean texting while driving, it’s any activity that takes a driver’s attention away from the road and increases their risk of crashing. That includes extended time with the radio or navigation system, eating, drinking, reading or driving when you’re tired.
According to the Minnesota Office of Traffic Safety, between 2016-20, more than 39,000 crashes, more than one in nine, were related to distracted driving. In 2020 alone, 29 people were killed and another 2,612 were injured, and of those, 160 were seriously injured in distracted driving crashes across the state.
Of the eight fatal crashes in Rice County in 2022, one was attributed to distracted driving. In 2021, the county saw five fatal crashes, one caused in part by a driver who was distracted.
Minnesota’s Hands-free law makes it illegal for drivers to read, send texts or emails, or access the web while a vehicle is in motion or a part of traffic. That includes sitting at a stoplight or stop sign. The first ticket is more than $120, which includes the fine plus court fees. The second and later tickets are more than $300, which includes the fine plus court fees. A distracted driving ticket leads to increased insurance rates. If a person is injured or killed because of distracted driving, under the hands-free law, the driver can face a felony charge of criminal vehicular operation or homicide, which includes the possibility of a prison sentence.
Rice County Sheriff Jesse Thomas said, often times, drivers have no idea what kind of danger they are creating by looking at their phones.
“People don’t realize when you’re doing 60 miles an hour, if you look down for 3-4 seconds, how far you travel, and it takes time to respond when you see something. So put your phone down. That text message, or phone call can wait. It can wait five, ten, fifteen minutes, whatever that might be, and make sure you get to your destination safe and everybody else is safe on the road as well.”
For more information on the hands-free law, visit the Minnesota Department of Public Safety website at dps.mn.gov
4000 Easter Eggs in Dundas
The annual Dundas Easter Egg hunt will return to Memorial Park tomorrow. 
Dundas City Administrator Jenelle Teppen said there will be more than 4000 easter eggs for the kids to find. The city is also asking, but not requiring, that the plastic eggs that are found be returned for re-use next year. Also, while the event is free to attend, there is a suggested donation of $1 per child hunting for easter eggs.
Generally, the easter egg hunt has featured a personal appearance by the Easter Bunny. However, there is no word yet on whether the bunny will make it this year.
The event will begin at 10 am tomorrow morning.
Unfortunately, however, the annual Easter Egg Hunt put together by the Northfeld VFW Post 4393 has been canceled. A statement posted to the VFW’s Facebook page said there is a worldwide shortage of jellybeans this year, and because of that, there isn’t enough candy to fill the eggs to be hidden.
The post also said the easter egg hunt will return next year.
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
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