Gov.-elect Dayton to drop puck as UMD opens arena

DULUTH (AP) — Gov.-elect Mark Dayton will drop the first puck at next week’s grand opening of AMSOIL Arena at the University of Minnesota Duluth.

The inaugural game will be played Thursday at 7 p.m.

Joining Dayton will be Duluth Mayor Don Ness and university Chancellor Lynn Black.

Minnesota-Duluth will be facing the University of North Dakota. The stadium, which holds about 6,700 people, is sold out.

Strangers help Minn. woman whose Xmas gifts stolen

RENVILLE (AP) — A single mother in southwestern Minnesota will have a merry Christmas after all, even though a thief stole all the gifts from under her tree last week.

Diane Lecy of Renville says strangers have sent her hundreds of cards and presents. She says the gifts exceeded anything she could have provided for her 8-year-old son.

Lecy came home Dec. 14 to a broken window on her front door. A burglar had made off with the lone Christmas gift she could afford for her son, along with gifts for his teachers and bus drivers and a bag of groceries.

Sebeka man dies in central Minn. logging accident

PILLAGER (AP) — A Sebeka man has died in an apparent logging accident.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office says it responded to a logging accident in the Pillsbury State Forest near Pillager in central Minnesota shortly after 9:30 a.m. Thursday. Authorities say it appears the victim was struck by a tree he was cutting down.

The accident remains under investigation.

The victim was taken to the Ramsey County Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy. His name has not been released pending notification of family.

19-month-old in critical condition; suspect jailed

OLIVIA (AP) — A 19-month-old child is in critical condition after being reported unresponsive in a home in the western Minnesota town of Olivia.

Law enforcement officers received the 911 call around 3:30 p.m. Wednesday. The Olivia Police Department says the toddler was taken to the Renville County Hospital, where it was determined the child had suffered “significant injuries.”

The child was later flown to St. Paul Children’s Hospital and is in critical condition Thursday.

Two Harbors ice bar serves up chilly cocktail hour

TWO HARBORS (AP) — Ice cubes probably aren’t necessary for your cocktail at the new bar that’s part of Grand Superior Lodge in Two Harbors. That’s because it’s made entirely of ice.

The bar is called “BL?, Ice Bar and Lounge” — that’s B-L with a question mark after it. It opened this past week in time for the Winter Solstice, and will stay that way for as long as nature allows.

The bar was crafted with the help of Chris Swarbrick, a long-time ice-carving champion at the St. Paul Winter Carnival. Grand Superior Lodge’s own executive chef, Dan Lageson, is also a part-time ice sculptor and helped with the creation.

The bar includes more than 200 ice blocks weighing 350 pounds each. Some blocks have rope lights frozen inside to create an eerie winter ambience, and there’s a menu of specialty drinks offered in glasses also made of ice. Two luges built into the bar will chill martinis poured through the ice channel.

Underage drinking on Brainerd lakes targeted

BRAINERD (AP) — Conservation officers will be cracking down on underage drinking this winter on Brainerd area lakes.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources says its officers have routinely encountered underage drinkers when conducting routine fishing license checks on the ice.

During the holiday season, conservation officers will be working throughout the Brainerd lakes area and focusing on places that have underage consumption problems in the past.

The enforcement initiative is supported by a grant from the Minnesota Institute of Public Health.

Minn. man accused of stealing items from doorsteps

ST. PAUL (AP) — A St. Paul man is accused of stealing dozens of packages delivered to doorsteps in a local neighborhood.

Forty-three-year-old Pedro Flores is charged with felony theft.

St. Paul police say when Flores was arrested Wednesday he had about 40 stolen items in his car. They say another dozen items were found in his home.

Authorities say the items included designer clothes, a scooter, video games and other items sent via Federal Express.

Police tracked down Flores after several witnesses reported his license-plate number.

Online court records didn’t list an attorney for Flores on Friday.

Police spokesman Andy Skoogman says authorities are trying to return the confiscated items to their rightful owners. He said that residents who haven’t received gifts they were expecting should contact police.

Fire equipment charity seeks help upon losing home

LINDSTROM (AP) — A Minnesota charity is looking for some help of its own as it faces shutting down if it can’t find an angel donor after losing its home.

The International Fire Relief Mission in Lindstrom has collected donated fire and EMS equipment from fire departments across the United States since 2007, and shipped those goods to underfunded and undertrained fire departments around the world from locations as far-flung as Honduras and Moldova. Since its inception, the mission has stored its goods in the warehouse of a local manufacturer, Rosenbauer America.

Now that company is expanding and needs to take back its space. Mission president Ron Gruening says the charity’s considerable and growing need for storage space could put it out of business if it doesn’t find $10,000 soon to continue its work uninterrupted.

The International Fire Relief Mission has no religious or political affiliations and its members draw no salary.

Clock ticking for Minn. workers seeking early out

ST. PAUL (AP) — State government workers in Minnesota hoping to take advantage of an early retirement incentive have one more week to sign up.

A New Year’s Eve deadline looms for veteran public employees to apply. At stake is up to two years of continuing state payments to the employee’s health care savings plan.

The incentive comes with conditions and strings attached. It is open to workers with at least 15 years of service and their boss has some veto power. Workers who take it won’t be eligible for any other state job or consulting arrangement for three years.

Minnesota has about 52,000 state government workers, when state college employees are included. The incentive applies to legislative, executive and judicial branch employees. They must retire by June 30.

Elected officials aren’t eligible.