The bodies of two anglers who went missing over the weekend on Upper Red Lake, Minnesota, were found on Monday afternoon Nov. 27, according to reports.
Police identified the two anglers as 30-year-old Melissa Marie Seidenstricker and 29-year-old Zeth Grey Knyphausen.
The pair reportedly drowned after their all-terrain vehicle broke through the ice on Saturday.
The two were last seen at Rogers Resort where they were renting a sleeping cabin on Friday evening, and during the day on Saturday, the Star Tribune reported. They never returned to the resort.
A Minnesota State Patrol aircraft with thermal imaging was launched in the hope of finding the missing anglers.
On Monday, a hole in the ice was spotted by a family member. Police used sonar to detect their vehicle underwater, then the two bodies were found around 3 p.m. on Monday, according to the news outlet.
Upper Red Lake, Minnesota, where the two anglers went missing. (Screenshot via Google Maps)A fundraising page for the pair, set up by friend Tony Wake, Melissa’s relative, Jake Seidenstricker described how the hole in the ice caught his eye.
“I see 2 black dots way off in the distance I tell the investigators about it and say I’m going to drive closer to get a look. As I drive closer I see the big hole so I figured I’d get off the wheeler and start walking,” he said on the page.
“I walked toward the dots but kept looking at the hole and decided to go in closer to look, I noticed a couple of strange things on the south side of the hole.
“So I walked closer to look and here it was my sister’s boot and glove and then I saw all of their boots and gloves floating on the edge of the ice. One boot was on top of the ice.”
Then the rescue team used a sonar and discovered the couple’s vehicle under the water, and soon recovered their bodies.
Jake added, “The 2 black dots that caught my attention were 2 big and beautiful eagles which I could only think that was Melissa and Zeth showing me where to look leading me to the location! Fly high you two! Forever fishing and traveling the sky’s!”
All proceeds from the fundraising page will be used for costs accrued by the families, according to the page.
It was Zeth’s birthday weekend and he had gone to the Upper Red Lake to spend some quality time with his girlfriend, Melissa, CBS reported.
“He was planning the trip to head out there and, of course everyone told him to be safe,” Al Slowinski, Zeth’s workplace supervisor told CBS.
“He was a hardworking kid, just very dedicated to his job,” Al said.
“I can’t say enough about him, he’s going to be greatly missed.”
He added, “We were really shocked.”
“Ice is never perfectly safe,” Sheriff Phil Hodapp said in a statement, according to the Star Tribune.
“Anglers are asked to check with the local resorts on the current ice conditions and open water, and report in with the resorts on where they will be fishing and check in with them often,” he said.
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