Driver in Isanti County Fair event dies after sustaining life-threatening injuries

A driver who sustained life-threatening injuries during a grandstand event at the Isanti County Fair on Thursday has died.

An update from a GoFundMe campaign to support the family of Josh Wines confirms he passed away after being airlifted to North Memorial Hospital following a collision at Thursday’s “Night of Destruction” event.

On Tuesday, Isanti County Sheriff Wayne Seiberlich clarified that the collision occurred during a race, and not the demolition derby.

"There was some incidental contact which caused the vehicle to turn to its side and eventually roll over," Seiberlich explained. "In that rollover, unfortunately, the driver was severely injured and was airlifted to a hospital in the Twin Cities where later he had passed away from those injuries."

The Isanti County Fair held a prayer vigil for Wines at 7 p.m. on Saturday at the grandstand after cancelling a previously scheduled “Night of Chaos” event.

"We lost somebody who was familiar to a lot of people within the fair organization and the agriculture society," Seiberlich said. "We lost a member of the community. He lived locally; this wasn't a stranger."

Seiberlich and Cambridge Fire Chief Ross Benzen asked a sheriff's office chaplain to reach out to civilians for a critical incident stress management debrief on Monday evening.

"It's an opportunity to sit and discuss what happened, get your feelings out and help process those," Seiberlich said. "It's not typically something we're able to do with civilians, but because of this and so many people were involved, the three of us took it upon ourselves to hold that."

Seiberlich said Thursday's accident had a "significant impact on the mood of the fair," with a "somber" feeling at the fairgrounds.

"There's just a lot of people who are so, so hurt by this," Seiberlich said. "Obviously the family, and I'm so sorry for the family and wish them the best as they face these difficult times, and there are so many others who witnessed it that are also traumatized by what had happened."