ELY, Minn. — A 34-year-old Indiana man is safe and warm, after a search and rescue team found him cold, wet and alone in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) Saturday.
The St. Louis County Sheriff's Office received a call from an Ely-area outfitter that had dropped the solo paddler off earlier for a trip into Nina-Moose Lake off the Echo Trail. The paddler had used a handheld inReach device to send an SOS signal, and a message stating "Help Wet and Cold."
A call went out for the St. Louis County Rescue Squad, who sent three team members into the wilderness area along with a DNR agent, and found 34-year-old Chori Rummel of Elkhart, Indiana not far from his last known location.
Team member Rick Slatten says rescuers had to break ice to get across Nina Moose Lake, and pictures show conditions were cold and snowy. Rummel was in a tent inside a lightweight sleeping bag, and wearing his one remaining set of dry clothes. He was very cold and diagnosed as mildly hypothermic.
The DNR recommends anyone who travels to the BWCA should have a communication device, be prepared for different types of weather and let other people know their travel plans.
Slatten says the rescue team lit a fire, warmed the man up and transported him to a landing without incident. The paddler was treated for exposure, but rescuers say he was uninjured and in good health once they reached the landing.
The outfitter sent a crew in the next day to retrieve the man's gear.
The Sheriff's Office reminds everyone who ventures into the BWCA to prepare for all conditions, do not take any unnecessary risks, leave a travel plan and travel with a GPS or SOS device if possible in case of emergencies.
