‘Pretty easy deal’: Tow companies pull half-submerged Buick from White Bear Lake
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A white 2008 Buick Lucerne that was stuck in the ice on White Bear Lake for nearly a month was set free on Thursday.
“This is actually the 13th one we've done this year,” said Sam Nelson, CEO of Rex Towing, one of the businesses that helped get the car out of the lake. “Pretty easy deal.”
The car has been stuck since Jan. 27 when the owner, a 41-year-old man, drove it over a pressure ridge on the frozen lake at night and it broke through the ice. The owner was able to get out of the car and left it half-submerged.
With its front end plunged in the water and its back end sticking up, the car had driven viral social posts and even attracted visitors. The Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office said the owner had 30 days to remove the car or face hefty fines.
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A Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson confirmed the owner got help from a private tow company that donated its services.
American Towing and Recovery of Lake Elmo, Bruce's Legacy of Black River Falls, Wisconsin, and Rex Towing and Recovery of Cannon Falls posted on Facebook that they worked pro bono on behalf of the owner to safely remove the vehicle.
Nelson said Bruce’s Legacy, which does underwater diving and recovery of vehicles, built an apparatus they used to get the car out. He said so far the trio has removed cars, UTVs and even an ice-fishing house.
“We did it free of cost for the publicity on it. Hoping, you know, maybe we can help out the community, since the thing was pretty viral, so we figure, well, we'll go and help them out,” Nelson said.
The group got together around 8 a.m., got on scene around 9:30 a.m. and had the car out before noon, Nelson said.
The owner was not there but was able to get his possessions out of the car before the workers tow it to the scrapyard, he added.
The Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office livestreamed part of the removal online.
“Our deputies fenced off the area around the hole and stuck a bunch of warning signs in the ice to alert anyone in the area of the danger,” the Sheriff’s Office posted on Facebook. “If you're planning to head out on ice, know the lake (especially if you're going out at night), stay alert, and remember there is no such thing as ‘safe ice.’“
MPR News reporter Nicole Ki contributed to this story.
