Steelheaders are Tough - Take a Licking and Keep on Ticking

Steelhead angler survives fall into Brule River and a heart attack

Burling “conservatively estimated” he spent 35 minutes in the cold
current before being rescued by a passing angler. He was flown to
Duluth’s St. Luke’s hospital by helicopter that evening. Doctors were
treating him for hypothermia when he suffered a mild heart attack, said
Dr. David Sproat of Duluth Internal Medicine Associates.

“I’m too ornery to die,” Burling said.

Understand, the man
knows adversity. Since his early 50s, according to his family’s
accounts, he has had two triple-bypass heart surgeries, six heart
attacks (including Tuesday’s), three strokes, carotid artery surgery
and surgery for colon cancer.

Via: Duluth News Tribune LINK