Minnesota man dies after falling into grain bin while trying to loosen frozen corn

ST. MARTIN TOWNSHIP, Minn. (FOX 9) - A 35-year-old man died Tuesday after he fell into a grain bin while trying to loosen up some frozen corn on his family’s farm in central Minnesota. 

At 10:16 a.m., one of the man’s parents called the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office to report their son was missing on their farm in St. Martin Township. The caller said they believed he might have fallen into the grain bin. 

The St. Martin Fire Department recovered the man, identified as Brandon Schaefer of Albany, from inside the grain bin, which was 3/4 full of corn. A preliminary investigation revealed he was working in the grain bin to loosen up the frozen corn when he fell in and the corn buried him. 

Paramedics transported Schaefer to the Paynesville Hospital, where he was eventually pronounced dead.