Southern Ont. snowmobiler killed in Lake Nipissing crash

A 33-year-old from southern Ontario has died after a single snow machine crash on Lake Nipissing near St. Jean Road on Tuesday afternoon, police say.

Emergency crews were called to the scene around 4:35 p.m. in West Nipissing where a motorized snow vehicle hit a water breakwall on the frozen lake.

"A 33-year-old-person from Exeter received serious life-threatening injuries and was transported to an area hospital by Nipissing Paramedic Services and later succumbed to their injuries," Ontario Provincial Police said in a news release Wednesday morning.

"OPP would like to remind the public to use caution when out on the area lakes keeping in mind that no ice is safe ice. Know the area that you are traveling and stay on the trails."

• 
  Download our app to get local alerts on your device


• 
  Get the latest local updates right to your inbox

This is the second emergency call on Lake Nipissing this week after a snowmobiler in their 70s hit a pressure crack on the opposite end of the lake and required medical attention.

"The ice thickness changes throughout the body of water. It may be thicker on shore, and thinner as you go towards the middle," said OPP Const. Rob Lewis.

"Any areas where there may be rocks or shoals, those areas heat up quicker and it opens up. The pressure cracks, those areas open up and create open waterways."

Shawn Flindall with the North Bay Snowmobile Club told CTV News that with spring conditions things start to fall apart quickly.

"We're going to get some snow over the next few days which often gives people a false sense of security," said Flindall.

"It's still spring-time, it's bright and sunny and going to be plus three, plus four over the next week, things fall apart really quickly and sometimes we forget that as snowmobiling enthusiasts because there is so much snow on the ground." 

Last week, OPP asked snowmobilers to slow down and follow the rules after four fatalities in the region this winter and two others were seriously injured on North Bay area trails since the beginning of March.

"It is really disheartening to see and hear about accidents and injuries on the trails, but almost always these incidents are related to speed, related to driving beyond your own capabilities and to not obeying the speed limits and the rules of the trails," said Flindall.