Minnesota briefs: Otter Tail County kicks off 150th anniversary celebration

The Otter Tail County Board of Commissioners will hold a special meeting on Wednesday to commemorate the date of its first meeting on Sept. 12, 1868, in Old Town Clitherall.

Other sesquicentennial festivities will take place throughout the week, including a specially commissioned musical that will be staged in four locations around the county. "Otter Tales: The Musical" will be performed in Battle Lake, Perham, Pelican Rapids and Parkers Prairie.

For more information, visit ottertail150.com.

JOHN REINAN

Electric vehicle drivers will soon have quicker ways to charge up their cars on the far reaches of the North Shore. Cook County is about to get three fast-charging electric vehicle stations.

DC fast chargers are going to be installed in Lutsen, Grand Marais and Grand Portage in the next couple of months, said Jenny Kartes, interim general manager of the Arrowhead Electric Cooperative.

The coop is partnering with the city of Grand Marais, Great River Energy and ZEF Energy to install the stations, which will be able to charge a car in as little as 30 minutes instead of a few hours on a Level 2 charger.

Officials expect the new charging stations will be useful to visitors as well as local residents who own electric vehicles.

Pam Louwagie

A Chevy TrailBlazer that ended up in the Poplar River nearly two months ago was finally pulled out last week, thanks to a salvage diver, side-scan sonar and a big claw.

The SUV was lost July 12 when a motor home driver crashed through the Hwy. 61 guardrail and ended up on the river's east bank. Although no one was hurt, the motor home had been towing the SUV, and it fell into the narrow canyon and the fast-moving river below.

"Kudos to Lake City Towing, their persistent crews and the brave diver involved in a successful vehicle extraction from the Poplar River today!" read a Facebook post from the Cook County Sheriff's Office. It says insurance paid for the recovery effort.