A northeastern Minnesota man was killed by a falling tree while out clearing snow Wednesday morning in rural St. Louis County, according to the county sheriff’s office.

Brian Pelander, 69, died after the sheriff’s office said that high winds and heavy snow caused a tree to give way at his property in the 7400 block of Laine Road in Alden Township, north of Knife River.

First responders were called at 10:22 a.m. Pelander’s wife reported she left for approximately 45 minutes as Pelander was out with a snowblower. She returned to find Pelander under a large downed tree, according to the sheriff’s office.

The season’s first major winter storm brought up to 10 inches of heavy, wet snow to the Arrowhead. Accumulations diminished to the south, with the Twin Cities officially measuring 3.1 inch

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