Snowmobile plows into tent during Long John Jamboree
Crash starts small fire; no serious injuries reported
John McFadden
Northern News Services
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
No one was seriously hurt when a snowmobile crashed into a tent at the Long John Jamboree on Sunday afternoon.
Canadian Armed Forces members pull a snowmobile out of a tent while RCMP and bystanders look on. The snowmobile crashed into the tent on Sunday afternoon at the Long John Jamboree. There were people inside the tent at the time, but no one, including the snowmobile driver, was seriously injured. - Robin Grant/NNSL photo |
Yellowknifer was on scene and just metres away when the snow machine plowed into a Department of National Defence tent and display area. Witnesses reported hearing a huge bang - some thought a gun had gone off.
According to Doug Gillard, manager of the Municipal Enforcement Division for the City of Yellowknife, a bylaw officer was patrolling the event and was alerted at about 2 p.m. of the incident. He said the crash damaged an oil stove inside the tent, which caused a small fire.
Two tourists, Anne Lee and Vicky Wang, were in the tent at the time. Wang said they were looking at maps and listening to military personnel when the crash took place.
Lee said her leg and hand hurt but had no visible injuries.
"Suddenly I heard a sound like rrr, rrr, rrr," said Wang. "I was thinking it was really close and then it was like a bomb."
Yellowknife resident Jeannie Scott said she was just arriving at the festival when she witnessed what happened.
"We saw a snowmobile moving really fast and it didn't stop," Scott said. "I was relieved to hear that no one was seriously hurt."
According to Gillard, Yellowknife Outdoor Adventures was the last registered owner of the snowmobile.
"Who was driving and their eligibility to drive will be a part of the investigation," he stated.
Yellowknife Outdoor Adventures is located in Old Town, not far from the jamboree site. On its website it states that snowmobiling is easy to learn.
"Prior to heading out, we provide a basic safety and operating instructions," states the website.
"All snowmobiles are fully automatic. It's as simple as thumb throttle to go forward, hand break to stop."
Yellowknifer reached out to company owner Carlos Gonzalez for comment but he did not respond.
Canadian Armed Forces spokesperson Maj. Josee Bilodeau directed questions about the incident to RCMP.
In an e-mail, RCMP civilian media liaison Marie York-Condon stated officers are investigating.
- With files from Robin Grant
