Highway 169 Reopened Near Lake Mille Lacs After Ice Heave
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A busy stretch of road in northern Minnesota is back open after an ice heave shut it down Wednesday night.
Highway 169 near Garrison is known for many things, including their close proximity to Lake Mille Lacs. On Wednesday night the lake got a little closer to town. A large ice heave crept across Highway 169, forcing the Department of Transportation to shut the road down.
Linda Eno, who owns Twin Pines Resort, said ice heaves this time of the year are not uncommon.
'It's so unpredictable and such a crazy force of nature," Eno said. "The wind has to be right, the ice conditions have to be in a little bit of a weakened, volatile state."
Eno said the road was down to one lane and then the MnDOT closed the road all together so they could clear the traffic lanes a little faster.
She gave a lot of credit to MNDOT saying that when things like this happen they "hop to action," and she thanked them for protecting the homes and businesses around the area.
Everything is back to normal Thursday, but that doesn't mean much.
"You just never know when it's going to start again," Eno said.
No one was hurt and no damage was reported.
Not familiar with an ice heave? Twin Pines Resort posted this video of the one that hit Highway 169.