INVUIK - Four people were lucky to walk away from a collision between two snowmobiles early Saturday evening, but the result could easily have been much worse, according to a police officer who was at the scene of the crash.

"No one was wearing a helmet. If it had been head on, there could have been serious injuries. Thank God there wasn't," said Const. Paul Woodfine of the Inuvik RCMP. The two snowmobiles collided in the westbound lane of Kingmingya Road at the overpass located near the entrance to the school construction site. Two people were riding on each snowmobile - three youths and one adult.

Curtis Hendrick, a passenger involved in the Kingmingya Road crash, receives medical attention at the scene of the collision. He was able to walk away from the scene along with the three other people. Police said there were only minor injuries as a result of the accident. - Andrew Rankin/NNSL photo

Several police officers arrived at the scene of the accident at about 6 p.m. and closed the section of the road. Woodfine said a crest in the road at the overpass prevented the drivers from seeing each other coming.

The accident is still under investigation and charges haven't been laid, Woodfine said. But he said neither machine was registered nor insured and neither driver had a licence, all of which are requirements for driving on public roads.

Alcohol is not considered to be a factor in the accident. Police would also not confirm who was driving either snowmobile.

The driver of the snowmobile travelling westbound managed to avoid a head-on collision by swerving left just before the crash.

That machine sustained minor damage while the other machine incurred significant damage with the front right ski almost torn off.

Curtis Hendrick, 15, who was on the westbound snowmobile, called the collision "scary" and said the force of the crash sent him flying off the machine. After having his foot attended to by a paramedic, he was able to walk away from the crash.

He said he had no long-term plans of avoiding roads while on a snowmobile.

"I'll stay off the road for a couple of hours only," he said to a chorus of laughter from his friends.

Pierre Marchand, who lives on Gwich'in Road, said he called the police about three weeks ago about a snowmobiler travelling up and down the road at about 100 km/h, without a helmet. He said the RCMP should issue stiff fines for speeding on public roads and take a tougher stance on what he said is a common problem during winter.

"It's really disturbing," he said.