Latest news with #LakeAlice
Washington Post
6 days ago
- General
- Washington Post
A Minnesota lake vanishes, leaving a pile of dead fish
The 'Land of 10,000 Lakes' is going down to 9,999 for a little while. Lake Alice, a 26-acre local gem nestled in the crook of Minnesota's eastern border, was drained to nearly nothing after maintenance staff found that the valve meant to control its water levels was stuck. All that's left now is a paltry stream where the lake used to be and a pile of dead fish.
The Guardian
7 days ago
- Climate
- The Guardian
Minnesota works to replenish lake level after draining from mechanical failure
Minnesota officials are working to restore water to one of the state's lakes after 'a mechanical failure of the water control structure' there caused it to drain significantly over the weekend. In a statement on Monday, the Minnesota department of natural resources (DNR) said that it was responding to the issue at Lake Alice in William O'Brien state park while noting that the malfunction in question had resulted in a 'significant drawdown of the lake level'. The department as of Monday said that 'only a stream remains on Lake Alice at this time' and warned visitors that water recreation on the lake would probably be affected for 'at least four to six weeks'. The lake's swimming beach is not currently usable, and the drawdown has 'caused a fish kill in the lake', officials added. Lake Alice is typically 9ft (2.7 meters) deep and spans 26 acres (10 hectares), according to the DNR's website. In a Monday afternoon update on social media, officials with Minnesota state parks and trails said that Lake Alice was 'spring-fed lake with an earthen dike that holds water back', and it had a 65-year-old water concrete control structure that 'can be manually operated to manage lake levels by allowing water to flow out into the St Croix River'. 'Due to heavy precipitation last month, water levels on Lake Alice were steadily increasing,' said the statement from officials. The statement added that when water levels became 'high enough that water was flowing over the dike between the lake and the St Croix River, DNR staff opened the water control structure's valve to release excess water from Lake Alice'. 'Upon attempting to close the valve over the weekend, staff discovered the control structure closure mechanism had failed and was stuck open, which has caused the lake to drain,' the statement continued. The statement said staff had since been working to resolve the issue, but a 'timeline for restoring lake levels is not known yet'.
Daily Mail
12-08-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Lake mysteriously vanishes and leaves confused kids playing in the dry sand
A popular lake in Minnesota has completely disappeared due to a maintenance mistake, leaving disappointed visitors to play in dry sand. Lake Alice has vanished from William O'Brien State Park and all that remains of the once sprawling body of water is a creek running through the empty lake bed and swarms of dead fish. The lake was completely drained due to 'a mechanical failure of the water control structure' that came after officials attempted to control increasing water levels. A malfunctioning valve led to a 'significant drawdown' of the water level on the lake, officials say. 'Due to heavy precipitation last month, water levels on Lake Alice were steadily increasing,' said a statement from officials. When water levels became 'high enough that water was flowing over the dike between the lake and the St Croix River', Minnesota Department of Natural Resources staff opened the water control structure's valve to release excess water from Lake Alice, but they couldn't close the valve. Park-goers say they've never seen anything like it. 'This is crazy. I've been camping here for years, and I've never ever seen it like this. It's kind of sad, actually,' Rose Wolfson, a Minnesotan, told KSTP. However this time around, the Wolfson's trip to Lake Alice was a flop - the confused children used their water toys to play in the dry sand and they certainly didn't get a chance to swim. 'They're [kids] having fun. They're disappointed they couldn't swim, but they're making the best of it,' Wolfson said. 'I'd like to see a lake again so that they could swim.' Another park visitor said, 'I feel badly for the fish population.' Lake Alice is known for great fishing, with various species that include bluegill, black crappie, largemouth bass, northern pike, walleye, yellow perch and bullhead. The lake usually spreads over 26 acres and is nine feet deep. Wayne Boerner, of Minnesota DNR, said the fish population will take a massive hit, but that other species will benefit from that. 'A bad day for one animal is a good day for another,' Boerner said. 'This morning you saw a few hawks going around. They are using this as basically somewhere to feed. You also have turtles down there. They're feeding on some of the dead fish.' 'They're [kids] having fun. They're disappointed they couldn't swim, but they're making the best of it,' a local said Lake Alice hasn't always existed. It was once just a stream, until the DNR installed a dike and water control system in 1961, turning it into a lake. 'We are seeing what is underneath Lake Alice right now from pre-1961,' Boerner said. 'We always want to do proactive measures for a lot of our infrastructure. In some cases, we don't have the money to do it certain times, or it gets delayed.' 'This was an accident through failed infrastructure,' he explained. The DNR said it could take at least a month to get the water back in Lake Alice. Luckily, the William O'Brien State Park sits on the St. Croix River, another great option for visitors looking for fishing, boating and paddling.
The Guardian
12-08-2025
- Climate
- The Guardian
Minnesota works to replenish lake level after draining from mechanical failure
Minnesota officials are working to restore water to one of the state's lakes after 'a mechanical failure of the water control structure' there caused it to drain significantly over the weekend. In a statement on Monday, the Minnesota department of natural resources (DNR) said that it was responding to the issue at Lake Alice in William O'Brien state park while noting that the malfunction in question had resulted in a 'significant drawdown of the lake level'. The department as of Monday said that 'only a stream remains on Lake Alice at this time' and warned visitors that water recreation on the lake will likely be affected for 'at least four to six weeks'. The lake's swimming beach is not currently usable, and the drawdown has 'caused a fish kill in the lake', officials added. Lake Alice is typically 9ft (2.7 meters) deep and spans 26 acres (10 hectares), according to the DNR's website. In a Monday afternoon update on social media, officials with Minnesota said that Lake Alice is 'spring-fed lake with an earthen dike that holds water back', and it has a 65-year-old water concrete control structure that 'can be manually operated to manage lake levels by allowing water to flow out into the St Croix River'. 'Due to heavy precipitation last month, water levels on Lake Alice were steadily increasing,' said the statement from officials. The statement added that when water levels became 'high enough that water was flowing over the dike between the lake and the St Croix River, DNR staff opened the water control structure's valve to release excess water from Lake Alice'. 'Upon attempting to close the valve over the weekend, staff discovered the control structure closure mechanism had failed and was stuck open, which has caused the lake to drain,' the statement continued. The statement said staff had since been working to resolve the issue, but a 'timeline for restoring lake levels is not known yet'.
RNZ News
22-06-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
Former Lake Alice nurse charged over ill-treatment of children dies aged 93
Dempsey Cockran in court in 2021. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon The only staff member at the notorious Lake Alice child and adolescent unit to face prosecution over the horrors at the Rangitīkei institution in the 1970s has died. Dempsey Corkran, 93, died on Saturday 14 June, according to death notices that appeared in weekend newspapers. The notices said the Marton man "died at home surrounded by his family", and his family thanked Marton district nurses and the Arohanui Hospice in Palmerston North. A private service has been held. "His presence, guidance and wit will be missed by us all," the notices said. Appearing in court under his full names, John Richard James Corkran, the former unit charge nurse faced eight charges of ill-treating children by injecting them with the paralysing drug paraldehyde. He was due to face trial in Wellington in 2023, but in June that year the High Court granted a permanent stay due to his failing health . Corkran first appeared in court in late 2021, then aged 89, at the conclusion of a third police investigation into the Lake Alice unit. That investigation found there was also enough evidence to charge the unit's lead psychiatrist Dr Selwyn Leeks and one other staff member, but they were unfit for trial. Leeks died in early 2022 in Australia, aged 92. Previous police investigations in the 1970s and 2000s did not result in charges. Corkran faced - and pleaded not guilty to - eight charges of ill-treating children between 1974 and 1977, carrying maximum penalties of 10 years' jail. Court documents said Corkran injected the boys with drugs for reasons including them running away; calling him a bastard; "being smart"; and because a boy was "enjoying himself too much, laughing and having jokes with friends". When the prosecution was halted, survivors of the Lake Alice unit spoke about their disappointment that no one would ever face justice for what happened there - horrors the government now acknowledged amounted to torture. Corkran did not appear at his later court hearings, but was at his initial call in the Whanganui District Court. Outside he declined to comment to reporters, and his family grew angry as television cameras followed him along the street. Corkran worked at Lake Alice from 1960 as a psychiatric nurse, becoming a charge nurse in 1968 and then in the child and adolescent unit, which opened in 1972, from 1974. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
