Independence Day weekend was once again touched by tragedy with a drowning on Temperance River in Tofte. On July 4, 2009 at 6:51 p.m. the Cook County Sheriff ‘s Office received a 911 call reporting a possible drowning at Temperance River in Tofte, Minnesota. Ari Benjamin Sommerfeld, a 45-year-old male from Ramsey, MN had been witnessed swimming in the river, and got carried away by the current.
The Cook County Sheriff ‘s Office, Tofte First Responders, Cook County Sheriff ‘s Response Unit, Department of Natural Resources, United States Coast Guard, Lake County rescue divers, St Louis County Search and Rescue, and Cook County Ambulance all responded.
On July 5, at approximately 12:11 p.m. Sommerfeld’s body was recovered from Lake Superior after being extricated from the bottom of a deep pool along the river.
There is no suspicion of any criminal conduct involved.
Sommerfeld’s wife, Martha Sommerfeld talked to Fox21television in Duluth, describing her husband as “adventurous but careful, and a kind and caring man.” She added that he had gone swimming in the same area many times before, but said this time the current was apparently too strong. She urged others to use caution near the Temperance River.
There have been multiple deaths in the powerful rapids. In 2008, two young women, 17 and 22, from Maple Grove. MN perished after being swept away by the current in a popular wading spot. In 2001, a 22-year-old hiker from Finland, MN died after falling in the river. In 2000, a 50-year-old Wisconsin man drowned while saving his eight-yearold son. Another father, 48, from Remer, MN drowned while rescuing his 12-year-old daughter. In 1996, a 14-year-old boy from Crystal, MN drowned after diving at one of Temperance’s waterfalls.
Temperance State Park officials said an estimated 160,000 – 200,000 people visit the state park each year and most of them adhere to the cautionary signs along the river.
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