North Dakota bar owner killed in freak accident while resetting pins in his bowling alley

A North Dakota bar owner was killed in a freak accident over the weekend while resetting the pins in his bowling alley.

Scott Willoughby, 59, the owner of Esmond Bar, was working to restore the two-lane bowling alley he attached to the drinking hole Saturday night when officials say he was crushed by the pinsetter, KVLY reports.

He was alone at the time, according to the Benson County Sheriff's Office, and was found dead Sunday morning.

The Esmond Bar later confirmed the owner's unexpected passing in a Facebook post, noting it would be closed until further notice.

Scott Willoughby, 59, the owner of Esmond Bar, was killed in a freak accident while resetting the pins in his bowling alley Saturday night

Willoughby had attached a two-lane bowling alley to the bar

'We write with a heavy heart that the owner, Scott, has passed away,' the post read. 

'Please keep his family in your thoughts and prayers through this very difficult time.'

One person who commented on the post expressed her condolences, and said Willoughby had discussed the renovations he was making to the bowling alley when she visited the bar recently.

'We had the best visit when I was there a couple weeks ago,' Stacey Kurtyka Atkinson wrote. 

'He showed us the bowling alley remodel. He was so proud of it,' she continued, adding: 'I can still hear him laughing and joking around!'

The Esmond Bar confirmed his death in a Facebook post and said it will be closed until further notice

Another Facebook user wrote that he had just worked with Willoughby on a promotional video for the bowling alley a few days before.

'This saddens me a lot,' Kevin Eilenberg wrote. 'I’m even more grateful that we randomly walked in.'

A funeral for the beloved bar owner is scheduled for Friday, according to an obituary posted online.