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Hutchinson Man Died in Apparent Farm Accident

GROVE CITY — Meeker County officials say the death of a Hutchinson man at a rural Grove City farm on Jan. 17, 2025, was the result of an apparent accident.

The West Central Tribune reports Sheriff Brian Cruze said in an email that a driver of a semitractor-trailer was reported missing while corn was being loaded into a trailer at a location on County Road 16.

On arrival, deputies saw neighbors shoveling through corn on the driver’s side of the semi. Deputies and emergency medical personnel also began digging.

Sixty-one-year-old Kim Hauer was eventually located and was removed from underneath the semitractor, however, he was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to Cruze, it’s unclear how Hauer ended up under the semi, but foul play is not suspected.