WINONA, Minn. – A dive team rescued two people after a canoe capsized just downstream from the Prairie Island spillway and brought them safely to shore, albeit shivering. The men in the capsized canoe had remained afloat with an inflatable raft thrown to him by bystander in shore. An ambulance was standing by, but neither canoeist wanted medical assistance, police said. One man reported losing a wallet in the ordeal. The incident was in fast current coming over the flood-submerged spillway on the Winona-Fountain City berm. The incident was about 6:55 p.m. Noting the danger of fast currents and flood debris, Deputy Sheriff Jeff Mueller repeated his warnings about the danger of going out in the near-crest Mississippi River. Mueller said that recent incidents have included houseboats breaking loose from their moorings.
