Falcon Heights Mayor Watches SUV Plunge into Icy Lake

WHITE BEAR TOWNSHIP, Minn. - Some Minnesotans are learning the hard way that the ice still isn't safe on some lakes -- just ask the mayor of Falcon Heights, who watched his SUV sink into a lake while returning from an ice fishing trip.

"I love the solitude, love being out there in the quiet," said Falcon Heights Mayor Peter Lindstrom.

On most winter days, Bald Eagle Lake is teeming with those who like to enjoy themselves on the ice. Yet, Lindstrom almost didn't make it back to shore last weekend.

"It was as scary as could be," he said. "On a scale from 1 to 10, it was a 12."

After spending several hours ice fishing, Lindstrom was driving off the lake on Saturday night when he got disoriented in the dark while heading toward the boat launch. Instead, he drove right into a patch of open water, leaving his SUV perched at a 90-degree angle and the engine filling with water.

"My life didn't flash before my eyes," Lindstrom recalled. "My sole focus was to get the heck out of that car and the only thing in my mind at the time was, 'Get out! Get out! Get out!"

After climbing out a window, Lindstrom watched as his Honda CRV sank to the bottom of the lake less than a minute after he escaped. Soaking wet and with a wind chill just above zero, he crawled 200 yards on his stomach to a nearby ice house, where a Good Samaritan helped him warm up before calling 911 and taking him home.

"I don't know if I would have made it to shore or not," Lindstrom said. "Fortunately, I'll neverk now because he helped me out."

After the closs call, Lindstrom says he has promised his wife he'll find a new hobby -- but he says you can never be too safe on the ice and hopes his story will help keep others safe.

"Even on lakes you are familiar with, don't assume just because it's 14 inches where you are, it's 14 inches everywhere else," he recommended.

The sheriff later banned cars and trucks on Bald Eagle Lake after another fisherman fell through the ice on Sunday. So far, nine people have gone into that lake this winter.

Both cars will be towed out of the water on Thursday, and Lindstrom estimates that could cost up to $30,000, but it should be covered by insurance.