ST. CLOUD — A 42-year-old St. Joseph man is facing criminal charges after admitting to drinking before a tubing incident that injured two 9-year-old boys, one critically.

Ryan J. Willis was charged Monday in Stearns County District Court with two felony counts of criminal vehicular operation and one misdemeanor count of operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol.

According to court documents, Stearns County deputies were dispatched to a report of a watercraft accident on Watab Lake, just north of St. Joseph, at about 4:45 p.m. Saturday. Willis told the deputies he was pulling the two boys on a tube behind a water scooter when he got too close to the shore and the tube hit the neighbor's dock, documents state.

One of the boys was airlifted to a children's hospital and reportedly suffered a skull fracture with a large laceration on his head, a bruised lung and bruising on his body; the other child was brought to St. Cloud Hospital for pain and a possible concussion, documents state.

A field sobriety test showed indicators of impairment and a preliminary breath test showed Willis had an alcohol concentration of 0.148%, according to court documents. The legal blood alcohol concentration limit for operating a motor vehicle, including watercraft, is 0.08%.

Court records show Willis was also convicted of a misdemeanor DWI in Sherburne County in 2009. His first court hearing was Tuesday, and his next is scheduled for Sept. 1.