Tragic Machinery Failure Kills Minnesota Farmer: Sheriff

STEARNS COUNTY, MN — A 46-year-old man died Tuesday evening in a farm accident northeast of Brooten, according to the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies were called around 5:47 p.m. to a rural property on County Road 201 in North Fork Township after a 911 caller reported a man pinned beneath a large corn planter.

Authorities said Eric Scott Segaar, of Brooten, was working with another man to repair a John Deere DB66 planter when the machine’s hydraulic system unexpectedly failed. The planter dropped suddenly, trapping Segaar underneath.

Despite life-saving efforts by deputies, firefighters, paramedics, and a Life Link helicopter crew, Segaar was pronounced dead at the scene.

The incident remains under investigation. The Brooten Fire Department, Brooten Ambulance, and Life Link Helicopter assisted at the scene.