Longtime Minnesota Sen. Torrey Westrom injured in snowmobile crash
Longtime Minnesota legislator Sen. Torrey Westrom was injured in a snowmobile crash over the weekend.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said the incident was reported at about 3 p.m. Sunday on Lake Ida, just north of Alexandria. Westrom was a passenger on a two-person Arctic Cat snowmobile crossing the lake when it hit a packed snowdrift, causing Westrom to be thrown onto the ice.
Westrom, 49, was taken off the lake on a rescue sled with what was described as an upper body injury, and taken to Alomere Hospital in Alexandria. The sheriff’s office said the 13-year-old boy who was operating the snowmobile was not injured.
A statement from Westrom’s family, issued through Minnesota Senate Republicans, said Westrom remained in the hospital Sunday night for observation. The statement said the snowmobile hit “an ice chunk left from a fish house.”
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The statement described the snowmobile operator as a family member, and said he had received his Youth Snowmobile Safety certification.
“Sen. Westrom sends his thanks to the first responders for their care and fast response,” the statement said.
Westrom, R-Alexandria, has served in the Minnesota Senate since 2013. He served in the state House for 16 years before that.
It’s the second consecutive winter in which a Minnesota legislator has been hurt in a snowmobile crash. Republican Sen. John Jasinski of Faribault was injured in a trail ride crash in February 2022.