Snowmobile Crashes Prompt Warning To Slow Down

Wardens are urging snowmobile riders to slow down after crashes injured two, one critically.

55-year-old Duane Carter of Spencer, Massachusetts remains in critical condition following an accident overnight near Staceyville. Carter was riding with a group on ITS 83, which is a portion of Swift Brook Road, overnight when he and 47-year-old Keith Sanford failed to negotiate a curve. Carter's sled collided with the rear of one driven by Sanford, causing Carter to be thrown from his sled. He suffered critical injuries, while Sanford hurt his back. Both men were transported to Millinocket Hospital, and then Carter was transferred to Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor.

Friday afternoon, 25-year-old Karissa Bardinelli was injured when her sled collided with a pressure ridge on Long Lake in Bridgton, just before 4:00. Bardinelli was riding ahead of her father, at around 60 miles per hour, on a well-established trail when she hit the ridge and was ejected from the sled. Wardens say her snowmobile traveled about 120 feet through the air before coming to rest. Bardinelli was wearing a helmet, and suffered a broken leg. She was transported to Bridgton Hospital by United Ambulance.

The Maine Warden Service is urging riders to slow down on the trails, stating that excessive speed continues to be the leading contributing factor in these types of accidents. Riders need to leave appropriate time and distances between sleds, while riding, to safely negotiate trail intersections and turns, as well as obstacles.