Fatal crash in Fort Good Hope prompts recommendations
Kevin Wilson
& Dawn Ostrem
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (May 21/01) - William McNeely can't bear the thought of someone else going through the pain he's gone through.
McNeely's 21-year-old son Kevin died last October when the snowmachine he was driving collided at high speed with another machine. Jason Russel Dean and Albert "Bobert" Lafferty, both in their 20s, also died in the accident.
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Percy Kinney, the NWT's Chief Coroner, released his report on the accident and recommendations to the Department of Transportation Monday at his Yellowknife office.
So far, the government has remained mum on whether it will act on the coroner's recommendations.
Kinney is calling on the Department of Transport to make helmets mandatory for all snowmobilers. Other recommendations include requiring visible registration for all snowmachines, enforcing manufacturers' age and passenger restrictions, and requiring snowmachine operators to have a valid drivers license or certificate from an approved snowmobile safety program.
"(Snow machines) have evolved," over the last 20 years says Kinney, adding that he thinks today's machines "are way more dangerous than all-terrain vehicles."
ATV drivers are required by law to wear helmets and have a valid license.
Two female passengers were also injured in the collision. None of the victims were wearing helmets.
Currently, snow machine regulations in the NWT vary from community to community. Kinney hopes the government will act on his recommendations.
Cpl. Mark Crowther, the RCMP's senior member in Fort Good Hope said his detachment is "ecstatic" about Kinney's recommendations.
Crowther says that while he's heard that there is some resistance from hunters and trappers who use snow machines on the land, "people also look at the very human issue of this tragedy," and are starting to wear helmets.
He says that since the accident, helmet use has gone up from practically nil to "two or three out of every 10 people."
Shelly Gordon, a resource specialist with the Inuvik Hunters and Trappers Committee agrees that recreational snowmobilers should be required to wear helmets.
"As for our hunters and trappers going out on the land, I don't think (wearing helmets is) a good idea."
Gordon says wearing a helmet prevents hunters and trappers from wearing adequate protection against the cold on their heads.
"It's not possible to wear fur under the helmet," she said.
