Man dies after farm equipment gets trapped in manure pile in central Minnesota

A man died Saturday in rural Stearns County after a skid-steer loader he was operating rolled into a manure pit.

According to the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office, emergency personnel responded to a report of a farm accident around 6:39 a.m. in Eden Lake Township. The caller said a man, identified as Todd Sieben, had been moving hay bales in the skid-steer near a manure pit when the loader rolled in with Sieben trapped inside.

Initial attempts to remove the loader using farm tractors were unsuccessful, the sheriff’s office said. A large tow truck was eventually able to remove the skid-steer, with Sieben inside. He was then pronounced dead.

The incident remains under investigation.