MINNEAPOLIS — It may be hard to come by this winter, but a Minnesota based company is continuing to embrace all things ice.
Sculptors were busy scraping, sanding and sawing an ice throne on Red Wagon Pizza Company’s patio Wednesday morning.
“In Minnesota, we have this really interesting social element that comes in the winter time,” chef and owner Peter Campbell said.
It’s an element Campbell and his team at Red Wagon have embraced for the second year in a row.
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“Restaurants like mine, 50 seat mom and pop restaurant in south Minneapolis or any other part of the Twin Cities this time of year struggles around January and February,” Campbell said. “It’s the time of year where belts tighten, spending changes, we lose 50% of our seating because we’ve got a massive patio. So this is a time where we hold on to our nuts we’ve gathered and hold on throughout winter.”
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By adding a few icy additions, a space that normally sits empty on a Friday night in February blossoms.
“The picture is very beautiful. There’s fire pits going, there’s families everywhere, there’s blankets when it’s poppin’. When it’s not, it’s very clear that there’s like a sadness. It’s really too cold or its just melting,” Campbell said.
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“It’s a very meaningful part of our financial equation for a small business like mine,” he added.
Campbell says he sells about 25% of what he does in June in January. The ice bar, and now ice throne, draw people in during a slow time.
It’s reactions like that, that keep Minnesota Ice Lead Sculptor Trever Pearson going.
“Ice really feels like it’s in our nature and our DNA as Minnesotans,” Pearson said.
READ MORE: Minneapolis officially closes outdoor ice rinks until next winter
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This winter though, ice has been hard to come by.
“This winter has been a little bit more tough. You know, these kind of El Nino cycles come every couple of years,” he said. “It’s not like we haven’t dealt with this before. We take all the precautions that we can to try and mitigate all the risk factors.”
Things like insulated blankets, UV resistant tarps, and dry ice.
“I’m all in on it,” Campbell said. “We’re having a blast doing it and it’s been a little devastating—our first ice bar only lasted five days, which was a bit of a bummer.”
Even so, Campbell says it’s a tradition he’ll keep going. The second ice bar installation has lasted a month so far.
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“I think, having gone through a warmer season I just feel like I know more information so when I do it again next year, I’ll know how to approach it,” said Campbell.
Minnesota Ice says while they’re winding down their busy season, but the icy work doesn’t stop after winter is over. They’ll be busy making ice sculptures for upcoming holidays, events and weddings.
Beret Leone
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Beret Leone is a native Minnesotan who joined the WCCO team as a reporter in September 2022 – and she’s thrilled be back home in the Twin Cities! Beret grew up in Chaska and graduated from Bethel University.
A United Airlines flight bound for Minneapolis from Chicago was reportedly diverted after an “unruly passenger” tried to breach the cockpit late on Friday.
The FBI and police responded to reports of a security concern with the passenger, who was detained by police at the Dane county regional airport in Madison, Wisconsin.
The flight continued its journey to Minneapolis, landing early on Saturday morning, according to FlightAware data. There were no reported injuries among the 147 passengers and six crew members onboard the flight.
A United spokesperson said flight 2005 “landed safely in Madison … to address a security concern with an unruly passenger”.
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The FBI in Milwaukee said the agency was notified of the flight’s diversion, and its agents, along with local law enforcement, responded to the airport.
“A subject was detained by the [local] sheriff’s office, and afterwards passengers resumed their flight,” an FBI spokesperson said.
In air traffic communications reported by NBC News, personnel onboard the plane could be heard discussing the attempted cockpit breach with ground control.
“I do not believe they ever cuffed him, but they were able to finally get control of him after multiple attempts to try to breach the cockpit,” a member of the crew said. “I believe at this point he is seated in a seat and flanked with law enforcement officers on either side.”
Aircraft hijackings are almost unheard of in the US since the September 11 terrorist attacks in 2001, when four aircraft were taken over by Islamic extremists, including two that crashed into and destroyed New York’s World Trade Center.
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But between 1968 and 1972, known as hijacking’s so-called golden age, more than 130 US planes were hijacked. Many of those hijackers demanded to be flown to Cuba.
CHICAGO (WLS) — A United Airlines flight that left Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport Friday was diverted due to an unruly passenger, officials said.
United flight 2005 from Chicago was headed to Minneapolis but landed in Madison, Wisconsin.
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“United flight 2005 from Chicago to Minneapolis landed safely in Madison, Wisconsin to address a security concern with an unruly passenger,” the airline said in a statement. “The flight is expected to continue to Minneapolis later on Friday.”
An ICE agent facing several assault charges in connection with a January shooting involving two Venezuelan people in Minnesota has been arrested in Texas, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said.
Christian Castro was charged earlier this month with four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime.
CNN is working to determine whether Castro has an attorney and has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment.
Castro faces those charges in connection with the shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan man shot in the leg through the front door of a Minneapolis home. The incident took place during the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement blitz in the Twin Cities.
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Originally, Sosa-Celis and his cousin Alfredo A. Aljorna were facing federal charges after DHS said they had attacked an agent, prompting him to fire a defensive shot.
But the Justice Department dropped the charges in February, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement said two of its agents, who made false statements about the incident under oath, were placed on administrative leave.
