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• Hudson -- St. Croix EMS & Rescue Dive cruise set Aug. 1
• 3-year-old rescued from the water at Hudson beach

St. Croix EMS & Rescue is hosting its second annual Dinner Cruise Friday, Aug 1. The cruise leaves from the Watergate Marina in St. Paul on the Mississippi River for a three-hour cruise. The event will be held aboard the 80-foot air-conditioned Magnolia Blossom paddle wheeler and passes through the St Paul waterfront area and scenic skyline.

This year's event includes a Texas Hold'em Poker Tournament on the upper deck with dining, cash bar and silent auction on the lower deck. Menu for the evening includes baked chicken, brats, baked beans along with side dishes and dessert, pop and milk are included.

Cost for the evening is $45 per person or $80 per couple. All proceeds benefit the St. Croix EMS & Rescue Dive Team. The dive team serves the greater Hudson area and is often called on by other area communities in search, rescue and recovery efforts. The SCEMS Dive team participated in recovery efforts following the collapse of the I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis last summer.

Boarding at the Watergate Marina off Crosby Farm Road begins at 6:30 p.m. with the ship leaving promptly at 7 p.m.

Reservations can be made by calling the St. Croix EMS & Rescue office at (715) 386-4777 or requested by email to info@stcroixems.com

Tragedy was narrowly averted at the Lakefront Park beach in Hudson Wednesday evening when a three-year-old girl who wandered into deep water was spotted floating face-down in time to save her life.

"Somebody had an angel watching over them," St. Croix EMS Chief Eric Christensen said of the rescue. "They were very, very lucky."

According to a Hudson Police Department report, the girl was at the beach with her father, Nicholas A. Amey, 27, of Stillwater, Minn. They were part of a group of friends and family members who were there with their children.

The report says a member of the party noticed something floating in the water, realized it was the girl, and went to her rescue.

Someone in the party called 911. The St. Croix County Emergency Communications Center received the call at 7:02 p.m.

"According to the bystanders, she was unresponsive initially, but then she came around," Christensen said.

He said she resumed breathing and consciousness on her own.

"I don't think she was under for very long," Christensen said.

St. Croix EMS rushed the girl to Children's Hospital in St. Paul. The police report says she was taken there as a precaution because she had taken in water.

Christensen said Thursday morning that he hadn't received any updates on the girl's condition. He also didn't know whether she is still in the hospital.

The Hudson police officer who responded to the emergency reported that he wasn't aware any negligence on the part of the girl's father.

A woman who answered the telephone at the number that Amey gave to the police said he wasn't there. She asked who was calling before responding to the Star-Observer's request to speak to Amey.