Gov. Walz Deploys National Guard For BWCA Search And Rescue Operation

ST. PAUL, MN — Gov. Tim Walz on Thursday authorized the Minnesota National Guard to transport equipment that will support search and rescue operations in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) for two missing canoeists.

The mission is in response to a request for assistance from the St. Louis County Sheriff, Walz said.

On Saturday, four canoeists went over Curtain Falls between Crooked Lake and Iron Lake on the Minnesota-Ontario border while fishing in the area.

"Four of them were basically anchored at the top of the falls, fishing, which they’ve done in the past, and it sounds like one of them may have had an issue and the other one went to try to give some assistance and both canoes and four people went over the falls," St. Louis County Sheriff Nate Skelton told Minnesota Public Radio.

The waterfall features a 30-foot decline with a rapid current.

Two group members were rescued but two Minnesota residents remain missing. Authorities identified the missing men as Jesse Melvin Haugen, 41, of Cambridge, and Reis Melvin Grams, 40, of Lino Lakes.

"No one expects their vacation to turn to crisis. Yet, when four canoeists went over Curtain Falls in the BWCA, this became a reality," Walz said in a statement on Thursday.

"My family is intimately familiar with the fear and heartbreak these canoeists are feeling. We are praying for those involved and immensely grateful to everyone from the Sheriff’s office to the National Guard who are supporting this mission."

The Minnesota National Guard will provide a CH-47 Chinook helicopter and four crew members for the mission in the BWCA, according to Walz's office.

The crew will transport a boat and additional equipment from the Ely airport to the area where two Minnesotans went missing.

Reporting from the Associated Press was used in this story.