Fire destroys garage near Pelican Rapids

By Tom Hintgen

Otter Tail County Correspondent 

Sheriff deputies, on Aug. 27, reported that a county resident has received scam calls from a person claiming to be from Medicare. Some information was provided to the scammer.

Medicare will not call you to ask for personal or financial information, sell you anything, or visit your home. If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from Medicare and asking for this information, it’s likely a scam.

Hang up and call the county sheriff office at 218-998-8555.

Here are additional scam prevention tips from county law enforcement:

The caller may claim there is an issue with your Medicare benefits and ask for information to fix it. This is a scam. The caller may also claim that you need a new Medicare card and ask for your number. If someone says you need to pay for a replacement, this also is a scam.

Help from Medicare is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, except some federal holidays. The number is 1-800-633-4227.

Fire destroys garage

A garage on the north side of Lake Lida, east of Pelican Rapids, was destroyed by fire on Aug. 30.

Sheriff deputies said firefighters found the garage fully engulfed in flames when they arrived at the scene of the fire, at 1:38 p.m., after receiving an emergency call. Pelican Rapids and Vergas fire department personnel extinguished the fire. No injuries were reported.

The cause of the fire is believed to be the result of a vehicle that was left running in the garage, non-suspicious in origin. The garage and contents were a complete loss.