Fire victim succumbs to injuries

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A Flandreau man burned in an apartment fire has died.
Ed Hansen, 89, died July 10 at the Hennepin County Medical Center burn unit in Minneapolis. His funeral was Saturday at Skroch Funeral Home in Flandreau. He was buried at the First Presbyterian Cemetery north of town.
Hansen suffered injuries in a fire in his apartment at 105 W. Second Avenue on June 24. The fire department was called at 7:30 that evening, but someone had extinguished the fire by carrying out Hansen’s chair. Firefighters ventilated the apartment, and Hansen was taken to a hospital by ambulance.

His obituary follows:

Edward W. Hansen, Sr., 89, of Flandreau, SD, passed away Tuesday, July 10, 2018 at the Hennepin County Medical Center Burn Unit, Minneapolis, MN. Edward W. Hansen was born June 28, 1929 on the family homestead northwest of Flandreau, SD. Edward was the eldest son of Otto and Minna (Siefert) Hansen.  The family farmed west of town until Edward was 10 years old. The family then moved to a farm east of Flandreau where they remained. Edward attended Flandreau Public School to the tenth grade. In December 1946, Edward enlisted in the Army Air Corps at Ft. Snelling, MN.  He took a troop train "cattle car" for three days from Ft. Snelling to San Antonio, TX, averaging 25 to 30 miles per hour. Edward married Beatrice "Peaches" Heminger at the home of Alex and Elsie Wakeman in Flandreau shortly after enlisting. Edward served as an SSG Surgical Technician with the 227th Fighter Squadron in Ft. Hood and Ft. Kearney until his honorable discharge in 1949. After serving in the military, Eddie worked as an electrician for Phillip Ekern's Hardware in Flandreau as well as farming part of the family farm. Edward also spent many years working in the construction business with many companies, at one time being the superintendent for Peter Kiewit Construction, Omaha, NE. Ed also worked for his brother Ralph's construction company in Flandreau. Having an extremely high IQ, Edward developed many interests and hobbies throughout his busy life.  Gardening, gunsmithing, restoring tractors, and fishing were among his favorite pastimes. Having married into a Dakota speaking family, Edward amazed his new relatives at how quickly he became proficient at speaking the language and would often converse with the relatives in Dakota. Edward and Beatrice had six children: Judith, Edward Jr., JoAnn, Janet, Joyce, and Wesley. Edward retired from farming and moved from his home on the family farm to town in 2014. 

   Eddie is survived by his sons, Edward Jr. and Wesley; 17 grandchildren, many great-grandchildren, and 4 great-great grandchildren; sister-in-law, Glenda Hansen; two nieces and one nephew. Edward was preceded in death by his daughters, Joyce, Judith, JoAnn, Janet, parents and brothers, Frank, Marvin, and Ralph.  

           

Funeral services will be 1:00 p.m. Saturday, July 14, 2018 at Skroch Funeral Chapel, Flandreau, with burial in the First Presbyterian Cemetery. Visitation will be 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. at Skroch Funeral Chapel, Flandreau. www.skrochfc.com