Snowmobiler dies after going through ice
Another in hospital after incident on Mobile Big Pond
A 45-year-old man is dead and a 23-year-old man is in hospital following an incident at Mobile Big Pond on the Southern Shore on Wednesday.
The injured 23-year-old man was found at a nearby cabin, an estimated two to three kilometres away from where the incident happened sometime in the morning.
The two were riding a single snowmobile when the ice cracked on the pond, which is about nine kilometres inland from Mobile.
A hunter was later checking on his cabin when he noticed footprints and a broken window. Inside the cabin, he found the young man, suffering from frostbite. The young man was reportedly able to start a fire in the cabin and stay warm until he was discovered by the hunter.
The young man was taken to the Health Sciences Centre in St. John’s and is in stable condition. Colin Maher, a resident of Mobile, spoke to The Telegram from near the scene of the incident. He says it’s amazing the young man was able to find the cabin.
“For him to walk down there, I couldn’t believe that. It’s absolutely blowing a gale. You can’t see the top of the pond. He had to walk from the very top to the very bottom. I couldn’t believe it,” said Maher.
The Rovers Ground Search and Rescue team has taken over the search for the body of the older man.
A hovercraft was called in late Wednesday evening to assist with the search. A crew of 15 to 20 volunteer search and rescue personnel, locals in the area and the members of the Salvation Army were on hand throughout the day and evening searching for the body.
Mobile Big Pond is used as one of the reservoirs for the local hydro plant operated by Newfoundland Power.
Maher says the incident happened on the far end of the pond, away from the reservoir canal.