2 dead, 1 critically injured in separate snowmobiling crashes in Quebec

Two men are dead and a teenager was seriously injured in three separate snowmobiling crashes across the province Saturday.

The  first incident happened in Quebec City’s Beauport borough at around 3:30 p.m.

Quebec City police (SPVQ) said a snowmobiler was struck and killed by a vehicle as he attempted to cross Lloyd-Welch Boulevard.

The 61-year-old man was following a snowmobile trail that crosses the road when he was hit.

The victim was taken to hospital where he later died of his injuries.

SPVQ spokesman Martin Dufour said speed and alcohol had been ruled out as factors in the collision.

The second fatal collision took place at 9 p.m. in Dosquet, in the Chaudières-Appalaches region. Police said a 48-year-old man from Saint-Agapit lost control of his snowmobile on a trail alongside Highway 116.

“He collided with a tree,” Sûreté du Québec spokesman Daniel Thibaudeau said. “His death was pronounced in hospital.”

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Police believe that speed and alcohol may have played a role in the crash.

The third crash happened at around 8:15 p.m. in Sainte-Beatrix in the Lanaudière region, after a 14-year-old boy collided with rocks jutting out from an island on Lac Cloutier.

The teenager was driving across the lake when he hit the outcrop and was thrown from his snowmobile.

“Visibility was quite poor and likely contributed to the crash,” Thibaudeau said, adding that the driver was underage.

“You have to be at least 16 years old to operate a snowmobile and you have to have a valid driver’s licence.”

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According to the Société de l’automobile du Québec, the licence requirement is mandatory if you cross a public roadway. Otherwise, snowmobilers aged 16 and 17 must hold a certificate of competence issued by the Fédération des clubs de motoneigistes du Québec.

The teenager was transported to hospital, where he remains in critical condition.

–With files from La Presse Canadienne