A 6-year-old girl was found dead near her Bemidji apartment early Thursday morning when the temperature was 27 below with a windchill that made it feel like 40 below.
Investigators are trying to determine when the child was last seen and how long she was outside. She was inside the front entrance of the building when police arrived.
Police declined to release the child's name until her relatives had been notified. Officials said the girl "had signs of being exposed to the frigid elements" but they're waiting for the Ramsey County medical examiner to determine the cause of death.
Officials said the girl was not waiting for a school bus: "It was much too early for that."
The Bemidji Pioneer reported the girl was wearing a jacket, boots, hat and mittens when emergency workers arrived at the Washington Avenue Apartments, 924 Carter Circle SE.
Mary Lynn Smith
