Farmer injured when hay rack is rear-ended

MELROSE -- A Melrose farmer was injured Thursday when his tractor and trailer full of haybales was rear-ended by a vehicle near Melrose.

Samuel Salzl, 48, was pinned underneath the tractor after it rolled in the ditch. He was extricated by rescue personnel and was taken by helicopter to the St. Cloud Hospital where he was treated for injuries and released.

A passenger in the tractor, Taylor Salzl, 18, of Melrose, was not injured.

The accident happened at 5:03 p.m. on Stearns County Road 13 in Melrose Township when a Dodge Stratus, driven by Salvador Estrella, 22, of Melrose struck the trailer.

Estrella was not injured.

The accident remains under investigation by the Stearns County Sheriff's Department.