A group of Girl Scouts camping in the remote wilderness of Minnesota, just miles from the Canadian border, needed rescuing late Friday after being struck by lightning as severe storms rolled through the area.
The group of nine scouts was on Knife Lake in the Boundary Waters canoeing area, in St. Louis County, some 120 miles northeast of Duluth, when the storms moved through. The accident took place about 20 miles from the Canadian border.
“All patients are awake, alert, and able to move without assistance,” St. Louis County Rescue Squad said in a statement posted to Facebook early Saturday.
Officials had said before reaching the group, that two girls were “showing accute symptoms that have us concerned.”
Ground and paddle teams reached the girls around midnight after the Minnesota State Police dispatched a plane to pinpoint the location of the group of Girl Scouts, authorities said.
Local officials also said they reached out to the Army National Guard for help, but the guard was unable to deploy a Blackhawk helicopter due to its use elsewhere.
“Thank you for all your comments, support, prayers, and inquiries,” St. Louis County Rescue Squad said. “Many agencies are throwing a LOT of effort at rescuing these people.”
Rescuers brought the injured children to safety by canoe overnight.
The group of Girl Scouts was from Chicago, a spokesperson told Duluth ABC affiliate WDIO.
“The lead guide called in the lightning strike, per protocol, informed authorities of their exact location per the planned route, and said ‘they believe that lightning struck the ground and they might have experienced ground current,'” Nancy McMullen, director of Marketing, Communications and Customer Care for the Girl Scouts of Minnesota and Wisconsin, told WDIO in a statement.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz tweeted about the rescue effort late Friday as well, calling them “a group of very brave Girl Scouts [who] need your prayers tonight.”
A group of very brave Girl Scouts need your prayers tonight. They’re waiting out dangerous conditions and potential injuries in BWCA, while search & rescue teams try to locate them. Our first responders train for this.
Weather was warm in the region on Friday, and a severe thunderstorm warning was in effect for northeast Minnesota throughout the night.
Severe Thunderstorm Warning continues for Silver Bay MN, Grand Marais MN, Finland MN until 7:30 PM CDT pic.twitter.com/AUKvoIHjCo
