BRAINERD, Minn. — Firefighters scaled a steep embankment in Brainerd to rescue three young men from a floating chunk of ice on the Mississippi River.

Fire Chief Kevin Stunek tells the Brainerd Dispatch (http://bit.ly/1hkkeJy ) the men, in their late teens or early 20s, were walking on the river's edge late Wednesday afternoon when a piece of ice broke free from shore and carried them out on the Mississippi.

About a dozen firefighters responded to the scene and accessed the river from a steep embankment, carrying their gear and an inflatable rescue boat.

The men were not injured.