ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Minn. — Editor's note: The video above first aired May 20, 2024.
The body of a second man who went missing while canoeing in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area was recovered Monday morning, in the same area he was last seen on May 19, according to law enforcement.
The St. Louis County Sheriff's Office said rescue crews pulled 40-year-old Reis Grams' body from a popular lake inside the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA). The body of 41-year-old Jesse Haugen, the man reported missing at the same time as Reis, was recovered Friday.
The sheriff's office launched a search and rescue mission over two weeks ago when a 911 caller reported two canoes had gone over Curtain Falls between Iron and Crooked Lakes, causing two people to go missing and one paddler to suffer serious injuries.
Reis' wife Angie, who spoke with KARE when Grams went missing, said her husband was a yearly visitor to Curtain Falls. She said investigators initially told her they believed one of the canoes got into trouble near the falls before Grams and his brother tried to help. Both men then went down Curtain Falls, Eric suffering from injuries but his brother Reis and the other canoe, went unaccounted for.
Angie described her husband to KARE 11 as a good man who loves his family and everything in the outdoors.
The family started a GoFundMe to help loved ones Gram and Haugen leave behind.
"This tragic accident has left the families with emotional, spiritual and financial need," the fundraiser's author wrote. "This event has changed the lives of all involved including the wives and young children of these two amazing men with a love for adventure and the outdoors."
Sheriff's officials said a DNR helicopter arrived on the scene around 12:30 a.m. Sunday and removed an injured paddler and another person from the wilderness. At daylight, the St. Louis County Rescue Squad was mobilized to search for the missing paddlers.
Commander Nate Skelton of the St. Louis County Sheriff's Department said the group of men were experienced paddlers.
In its statement Monday, the sheriff's office said Grams' body was flown by plane from the recovery site to Ely.
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