Bad Enough to Fall Out of Treestand...

[HHC1]

DULUTH, Minn. — An 84-year-old hunter caught his clothes on fire in a deer stand, then died after falling out of the tree on Saturday morning, authorities said.

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Arthur Joseph Knafla of Maple Grove was pronounced dead at the scene, NBC station KBJR reported. The accident occurred in Lavell Township, southeast of Hibbing, the Star-Tribune reported.

According to the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office, Knafla was attempting to light a propane heater in his partially enclosed deer stand when his clothes caught fire. Knafla then fell from his deer stand.

A Meadowlands ambulance responded to the incident.

Saturday was the opening day of the Minnesota deer hunting firearms season.

This article includes reporting from NBC station KBJR of Superior, Wisc., and msnbc.com staff.

[agross]

That sucks all around. What if you were tethered to the tree and the entire stand caught on fire???

Geez what a way to go.

[Doc]

Talk about having a bad day! My gosh that is horrible. They didn't say what killed him.... the fire or the fall.

That does make you wonder how flammible the pop-up ground blinds might be. Anyone screwing around inside of one of them with a propane heater or some such device might want to think about that. Might just find yourself zippered into a ball of fire.

[Deerthug]

Oh man that sucks! What a way to die. Falling out of treestand while engulfed in flames

[SteveNY]

Jesus, that is terrible

[WNYBuckHunter]

Thats the craziest treestand fall Ive ever heard of.

[hunter]

RIP old timer.

[hb270deermanager]

God rest his soul not sure what to say.I think for 84

if he was still that active god bless him.It's still a really

terrible accident.Safty is so very important accident's

can happen at any time its just so unfortunate that he

hunted all his life and died that way.My prayers go out

to his family.I hope some one somewhere doin the heater

in the stand setup takes notice and refects back on this

before lighting ther heater.

[132 eight pointer]

There must have been people hunting with him.Honestly I would rather go like that then unconscious and starving to death for a week like some people in facilities do.Still out there at 84 yrs. old, that is remarkable.

[Karpteach]

Holy smoke, what can one say? It sux, however he did go doing what he loved.