UPDATE:
DENT, Minn. (KFGO) – The Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Office has made an arrest in connection with a bridge fire on Highway 41, that crosses Star Lake near Dent, Minnesota.
43-year old Ryan Curtis Johnson, of Mapleton, North Dakota. was arrested for arson and is being held in the Otter Tail County Jail.
Sheriff’s deputies and Dent Fire and rescue crews responded to the bridge shortly after midnight Sunday. According to the sheriff’s office, investigators determined that it appeared gasoline had been poured over the mostly wooden bridge structure and several propane tanks were nearby the bridge. The caller who reported the fire saw the gas can on the bridge and saw a vehicle leave the area.
A state fire marshal conducted an investigation and Johnson was arrested later in the day Sunday.
Johnson owns a home near the bridge. The investigation is still underway to determine a motive.
ORIGINAL STORY:
OTTER TAIL COUNTY, MINN. – The Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Office says a fire that heavily damaged a bridge that crosses Star Lake east of Pelican Rapids is being investigated as arson.
The bridge, on Highway 41, referred to by some local residents at Frank’s Memorial Bridge, was gutted by a fire that started late Saturday night. It took firefighters several hours to put out the blaze.
Propane tanks found beneath the bridge appear to have been used in setting the fire.
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