Man missing after breaking through Mississippi River ice by U of M
Hennepin County Sheriff's deputies and Water Patrol are searching for an adult man who fell through the ice on the Mississippi River near the University of Minnesota Rowing Club around 4 p.m. Friday and could not be located before nightfall. A woman who tried to reach him also broke through the ice but managed to get back to shore and was taken to a hospital as a precaution for cold exposure. Water Patrol used sonar to search beneath the ice Friday evening without success and say they will resume search-and-recovery operations Saturday in daylight. The incident highlights how deceptively thin and unstable river ice remains in mid-February around campus and elsewhere in the metro, despite recent cold snaps, and underscores law-enforcement warnings against venturing onto large rivers during winter.
Show source details & analysis (1 source)
📊 Relevant Data
Since 1976, there have been 267 ice-related fatalities in Minnesota, with only 5 resulting from hypothermia. ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf)) ([Minnesota Department of Natural Resources](https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/education_safety/safety/ice/ice-stats.pdf))
Minnesota Ice-Related Fatality Statistics 1976 – 2024 — Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Climate change is causing the Mississippi River in Minnesota to have thinner ice, covering less area, and melting earlier than in previous decades. ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007)) ([jsonline.com](https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2025/02/06/climate-change-makes-mississippi-river-freeze-over-less-than-ever/77903606007))
Climate change makes Mississippi River freeze over less than ever — jsonline.com
Ice off timing on Lake Pepin, part of the Mississippi River near Minnesota, now occurs more than a week earlier due to climate change impacts. ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river)) ([wicci.wisc.edu](https://wicci.wisc.edu/2021-assessment-report/water/impacts-of-climate-change-on-the-mississippi-river))
Impacts of climate change on the Mississippi River — wicci.wisc.edu
📌 Key Facts
- Around 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, an adult man walking on the Mississippi River ice near the U of M Rowing Club fell through.
- An adult woman who went onto the ice to help him also fell in, but was able to get back to shore and was hospitalized for cold exposure as a precaution.
- Hennepin County Sheriff’s Water Patrol used sonar Friday evening but could not locate the man and will resume search‑and‑recovery operations Saturday in daylight.
📰 Source Timeline (1)
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