UPDATE: Death At Eelpout Festival Ruled As Accidental

The death of a Bemidji man at the International Eelpout Festival in Walker last month has been been ruled as accidental.

According to a release from the Cass County Sheriff’s Office, the death of Samuel Schooley, 21, of Bemidji was caused by carbon monoxide poisoning.

Deputies responded to the Eelpout Festival around 9 AM on February 25 after a report of an unresponsive man in a fish house. The man was taken to the Park Rapids Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.