A man operating a piece of equipment tipped into a manure pit before dawn on a Stearns County farm and died before rescuers could get him out, authorities said.
The incident occurred about 6:35 a.m. Saturday on a farm 4 miles south of Richmond in the 18700 block of Hwy. 22, the Sheriff's Office said.
According to the Sheriff's Office:
Todd Sieben, 42, of nearby Eden Valley, was moving hay bales with a skid steer loader when the equipment rolled into the manure pit.
As rescue personnel and a tow truck were en route, people with farm tractors attempted to free the loader and Sieben from the pit.
The tow truck arrived and removed the loader, but Sieben was inside and dead by that time, the Sheriff's Office said.
