WILMONT -- A preliminary autopsy report shows a Wilmont woman whose body was discovered Sunday morning died of exposure, and not of a blow to the head, according to Nobles County Sheriff Kent Wilkening.
"The head injury was consistent with that of a fall," Wilkening said Tuesday. "The conclusion is she fell, hit her head and died of exposure."
Deb Bell, 56, was discovered on a sidewalk near the community center in Wilmont by a neighbor around 8 a.m. Sunday morning. Her body was covered with snow. She was last seen at approximately 1 a.m. Sunday leaving the Wilmont Municipal Liquor Store, a city-owned liquor store and bar. The community center is located just across the street from the bar.
Authorities have concluded she was walking home when she slipped on the icy pavement and fell, hitting her head on a fire hydrant. Her residence was located less than a block from the liquor store, where she had worked the day shift as a bartender on Saturday.
The report states the fall more than likely knocked Bell out, as it didn't look as though she had tried to move after the fall.
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For visitation and service information for Bell, please see A2.
