Minnesota senator seriously injured in snowmobile crash with fellow lawmaker
Minnesota state Sen. John Jasinski was hospitalized Friday after a fellow senator crashed into him while they were driving snowmobiles near Brainerd.
(FOX 9) - Minnesota state Sen. John Jasinski suffered several broken bones and had to be airlifted to a Metro hospital after a snowmobile crash near Brainerd on Friday.
Jasinski, R-Faribault, has three broken ribs, a broken pelvis and fractured L5 vertebrae, he said in a Monday morning statement. He was airlifted to North Memorial Hospital in Robbinsdale and said he expects to fully recover.
"While the physical recovery may be long, I’m ready to participate with remote access for hearings and floor sessions and fully engage in this session," Jasinski said in an emailed statement.
Jasinski was making a 90-degree turn when he "lost control causing him to be thrown off the snowmobile," the Morrison County sheriff said in a revised news release Monday. Fellow state Sen. Mark Johnson, R-East Grand Forks, "then struck the snowmobile that was unoccupied," the sheriff's office said.
An earlier statement from the Morrison County Sheriff said Johnson had "rear-ended" Jasinski's snowmobile, causing Jasinski to be thrown off.
The two senators were attending the Minnesota United Snowmobilers Association's Winter Rendezvous trail ride in Scandia Valley Township along with other Senate GOP caucus members and staff.
Johnson said he was not hurt and back at the state Capitol on Monday.
Morrison County Sheriff Shawn Larsen has not released the full incident report nor responded to questions about the incident.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Morrison County Sheriff's Office and local police and firefighters responded to the scene.