Dec. 09--MONTE CRISTO -- A 22-year-old airman stationed on Hill Air Force Base was killed in a snowmobiling accident Sunday afternoon in the Monte Cristo Range.
At about 2 p.m. the Weber County Sheriff's Office responded to reports of an accident involving snowmobiles about five miles east of the snowmobile parking lot on State Road 39, Sgt. Lane Findlay said. The area is known as Dry Bread.
Three airmen and a civilian had been in the area riding snowmobiles since early morning, according to a news release from the Weber County Sheriff's Office.
As the four of them were descending down a steep embankment above the road, one of the airmen in the rear crashed, unbeknownst to his friends. When they reached the bottom of the hill, they realized he was not with them and they went back up to search for him.
They found their friend pinned underneath his snowmobile. He was reportedly not breathing and did not have a pulse when they found him.
One of the victim's friends used a SPOT satellite tracking device to alert emergency services, Findlay said.
Several other snowmobilers stopped to assist the airmen.
Weber County deputies, fire personnel and Cache County Search and Rescue responded to the accident, Findlay said. The victim was pronounced dead on the scene.
It is unknown what caused the airman to crash.
He was wearing full protective gear including a helmet at the time of the crash.
Findlay said weather was most likely not a factor in the accident. The incident is under investigation by the Weber County Sheriff's Office.
The victim's name has not been released pending notification of family members. He was a Davis County resident and from out-of-state. It is unknown what the man's duties on base were.
Contact reporter Andreas Rivera at 801-625-4227 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @SE_Andreas.
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