BIG KANDIYOHI LAKE, Minn. -
A boy was airlifted from Big Kandiyohi Lake on Saturday after he was hit by a pontoon boat while kneeboarding.
The Kandiyohi County Sheriff's Office first received the 911 call at 3:38 p.m., and emergency responders were sent to the 6500 block of 14th Avenue Southeast.
Upon arrival, crews found an 8-year-old boy who had been brought to the shore by his family. Responders say the boy suffered a head injury but was able to interact with emergency personnel as they tended to his wounds.
Witnesses told investigators that the victim's 33-year-old father was pulling his son out into the lake on a kneeboard when a pontoon coming from the west veered to avoid the 1984 Fisher fishing boat and struck the boy.
The driver of the 2009 Sylvan pontoon was identified as a 75-year-old woman from Minnetonka. Alcohol is not believed to be a factor in the crash.
The boy, who had been wearing his life jacket, was airlifted by North Air Care to North Memorial Hospital in Robbinsdale. His condition is not known.
