Emily man drowns

CROSBY -- A 52-year-old rural Emily man died in an apparent drowning Friday on Square Lake, about 14 miles northwest of Crosby.

Crow Wing County Sheriff's Lt. Neal Gaalswyk said Saturday it was unknown how Darrel Stangel fell out of his canoe and into the lake. Gaalswyk said Stangel was last seen fishing in the canoe Thursday night.

The Crow Wing County Sheriff's Water Patrol responded after Stangel's friends reported the missing boater at 12:50 p.m. Stangel's canoe was found on the southwest corner of the lake. The canoe was unoccupied, but there was a small dog near it and a variety of items in the canoe, including a life jacket.

Gaalswyk said deputies began to search the lake by boat. The State Patrol began searching by air and spotted what appeared to be a body. Deputies recovered Stangel's body at 3:28 p.m. submerged in about seven feet of water, 60 feet from shore. Stangel was pronounced dead at the lake. He was not wearing a life jacket.

The DNR assisted in the search

Gaalswyk reminded boaters that most people who drown don't intend to be in the water and that an unexpected fall overboard can turn deadly quickly for a person not wearing a life jacket.