Man dies after vehicle falls through ice in Lake Bemidji on Christmas Eve

BEMIDJI, Minn. (FOX 9) - A man has died after a vehicle he was in crashed through the ice of a northern Minnesota lake on the evening of Christmas Eve.

Around 5:30 p.m. on Friday, the Beltrami County Sheriff's Office received a 911 call reported a vehicle going through the ice in Lake Bemidji. When emergency responders arrived, they found a woman who was able to get out of the water on her own and transported her to a local hospital for care.

A man still in the vehicle was rescued from the lake by a Bemidji firefighter wearing a cold water immersion suit and Beltrami County deputies. Authorities estimate that the vehicle fell through 4-5 inches of ice and went into 8-10 feet of water.

Deputies say the man was transported to the Sanford Medical Center in Fargo, where he later died.

The area was barricaded after the incident occurred near Diamond Point Park across from Bemidji State University. Deputies say the ice where the vehicle went through is "unstable, much like many area lakes."