Ice on the road caused a number of vehicle accidents on Saturday, October 29—two in the exact same spot on the Gunflint Trail.
The first accident was reported when Philip Christopher Larson, 26, Stillman Valley, Illinois, called Cook County Law Enforcement at 7:04 a.m., requesting the phone number for a tow truck because he had rolled his 1994 GMC Sonoma. Larson was heading south on the Gunflint Trail just north of Pincushion when he left the roadway. He was uninjured.
Cook County Law Enforcement received the second call reporting a vehicle in the ditch at 9:18 a.m. near the Four Corners on the Gunflint Trail. As the caller informed the law enforcement dispatcher of the accident, another vehicle slid into the ditch, crashing into the first vehicle. One of the cars, driven by Susan Diane Howard, 58, Grand Marais, had rolled over on its top. The other car was driven by Dagmara Malgorzata Smith, 30, Grand Marais.
When a Minnesota state trooper arrived at 9:27 a.m., Howard appeared to be trapped in her vehicle. Maple Hill Fire Department, Grand Marais Fire Department, Grand Marais First Responders, and Cook County Ambulance were called. Grand Marais Fire Department was asked to bring equipment in case extrication was needed, but Howard was able to get out of her vehicle on her own.
Neither she nor Smith needed medical transport and no citations were issued.
The Cook County Highway Department also responded to salt/sand the road.
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