Two men injured in crashes involving deer

Two area men were injured in separate crashes Thursday as the vehicles they were driving either struck a deer or swerved to avoid them.

Driver Monty Gardner, 39, Breezy Point, was injured when the motorcycle he was riding was involved in a crash with a deer. The crash was reported at 4:56 p.m. Thursday on County Road 23 and County Road 2 in Platte Lake Township. Gardner was transported by North Ambulance. He was treated at St. Joseph's Medical Center and released.

Mark Kewatt, 44, Aitkin, was injured in a crash at 5:19 a.m. Thursday when the van he was driving on County Road 30 and Anderson Road in Rabbit Lake Township swerved to avoid four deer, went into a ditch and rolled. Kewatt was transported by ambulance to the Cuyuna Regional Medical Center in Crosby. He was then transferred to St. Cloud Hospital. Kewatt was in fair condition Friday at St. Cloud Hospital and has since been discharged.