A family of four escaped injury thanks to wearing life jackets after their canoe capsized. The Sheriff's Office reminds boaters to always were life jackets and use caution and prudence when deciding whether or not to take a canoe out in windy or adverse weather conditions.

On 8-12-2021, at around 4 PM, the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office and Rescue Squad responded to Sand Lake in unorganized township, 60-18 in the Britt area, for a water emergency.  Philip Poulose and a friend were canoeing on the lake during very windy weather when the waves started to flood their canoe.  Philip told his friend he was going to swim for the shoreline and his friend swam to a small island where he was eventually rescued. Neither had a life jacket with them.

On 08/11/2021, at 2:27pm, the Industrial Township Volunteer Fire Department was dispatched to the report of a structure fire at 4867 Independence Road in Industrial Township.  Responding units arrived on scene and located a 5th wheel camper, storage shed, and vehicle which were all close together were fully involved.  The 5th wheel camper, storage shed, and vehicle were all total losses, and the cause of the fire is currently unknown.  Contact was made with the homeowners who were not home at the time of the fire.

Following the announced retirement of St. Louis County Attorney Mark Rubin, under Minnesota law, it is the County Board's responsibility to appoint someone to fill the role for the remainder of the term. 

Rubin plans to retire on September 30, 2021. His current term ends January 2, 2023.

Anyone interested in applying for the appointment should email a cover letter and resume to  Deputy County Administrator Brian Fritsinger at fritsingerb@stlouiscountymn.gov on or before August 31, 2021.

At their meeting Tuesday, commissioners expressed a commitment to keeping the selection process transparent. The Board intends to make a final decision on whom to appoint at its meeting on September 14. That meeting is scheduled to be held at the Virginia Courthouse, 300 South 5th Avenue in Virginia.

Effective Wednesday, August 11, St. Louis County is requiring face masks to be worn inside all county buildings. This applies to all employees and visitors regardless of vaccination status. 

St. Louis County continues to experience substantial transmission of COVID-19. The CDC defines substantial transmission as 50 or more new cases per 100,000 residents in a week. St. Louis County, with 200,000 residents, has had 120 new cases in the last week.

Wearing a face mask is a proven way to limit spread of COVID-19, in particular to the unvaccinated, including children who are too young to be eligible for the vaccine. Getting vaccinated remains the best way for people to protect themselves and those around them from the potentially serious effects of COVID and the highly contagious delta variant.

Vaccination data (as of August 8) for St. Louis County shows that 116,522 people have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. This equals 67.7% of the population age 16 and older. St. Louis County Public Health continues to offer vaccine clinics each week. Details can be found at stlouiscountymn.gov/vaccineregistration. People also are encouraged to check with their medical provider or pharmacy for vaccine opportunities.