INTERNATIONAL FALLS, Minn. — The National Park Service (NPS) is investigating the death of a law enforcement park ranger after the ranger responded to a call for assistance from a distressed vessel.
St. Louis County Sheriff Gordon Ramsay told KARE 11 that a 911 call came into dispatchers Sunday around 11:30 a.m. from a family of campers stranded on an island on Namakan Lake in Voyageurs National Park. Ramsay said conditions were brutal with winds gusting at well over 40 miles per hour and waves five to six feet tall, and the campers couldn't get their boat off the beach.
The veteran ranger - identified Monday evening as 55-year-old Kevin Grossheim of Kabetogema - - responded to the emergency without hesitation. He reached the family, but while attempting to tow the stranded craft to the mainland the ranger's boat capsized, throwing all four people inside into the water.
The three people being assisted swam to safety but Grossheim remained unaccounted for, according to NPS officials.
After a three-hour search, Grossheim's body was recovered from Namakan Lake at approximately 3:20 p.m. The three survivors were taken to Crane Lake to debrief with law enforcement.
"I just had a feeling something bad was going to happen in these conditions," Ramsay reflected as he drove to the Twin Cities as part of a procession escorting Grossheim's body to the Midwest Medical Examiner's Office. He shared that the winds were so strong they blew a patio set into his home on a lake near Duluth.
Namakan Lake is a body of water that stretches out over 25,000 acres on the border of Minnesota and Ontario. It is 16 miles long and seven miles wide at one point and is among the network of lakes that encompass Voyageurs National Park.
Ramsay emphasized that Grossheim was an extremely experienced boater and outdoorsman with a servant's heart "who knew safety." The sheriff also shared that along with his law enforcement duties, the ranger served as a volunteer firefighter and paramedic for his small community.
"Quiet guy, big heart, and just loved to help people," the sheriff said. "He was built for this job."
"Things can happen really fast," Ramsay added, reminding Minnesotans that it's best to wait out severe conditions instead of venturing into them.
The NPS released a statement Monday night, paying tribute to a man who served Minnesota residents and outdoor-loving visitors for more than two decades. “Kevin was much loved by all and always known to go above and beyond,” said Voyageurs National Park Superintendent Bob DeGross. “He will be greatly missed. Our hearts go out to his wife and their loved ones.”
Grossheim started his career as a seasonal ranger at Boston National Historical Park in 1993, working seasonally at Curecanti National Recreation Area. In 1995, he became a permanent park ranger - serving first at Boston National Historical Park and Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore - before moving to Minnesota and what would become a 23-year stay as a commissioned law enforcement park ranger at Voyageurs.
Details about memorial services for Kevin Grossheim are still being finalized.