WEST YELLOWSTONE, Mont. – A Washington woman was injured near West Yellowstone Wednesday after she was ejected over the front of her snowmobile in a collision, according to the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office.
The Sheriff’s Office reports that at 3:37 p.m. Wednesday, West Yellowstone Police Department Dispatch received a call from a woman reporting that her daughter had been involved in a snowmobile crash.
The 21-year-old woman from Gig Harbor, Washington injured her ribs, back and neck when her snowmobile collided with another snowmobile at an intersection, ejecting her over the front of her snowmobile.
Rescuers from Sheriff’s Search and Rescue in West Yellowstone, Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks, and Hebgen Basin Fire Department responded to assist. They located the injured woman approximately 10 miles northwest of West Yellowstone using GPS coordinates retrieved from the 911 call.
The woman was transported via rescue sled to a waiting Hebgen Basin Fire Department ambulance. She was transported to the Big Sky Medical Center in Big Sky.
Sheriff Brian Gootkin said in a media release that snowmobilers in the backcountry should “ride within their abilities and understand the capabilities of their individual machine.”
“When approaching intersections or blind corners snowmobilers should slow down appropriately to allow for the maneuverability necessary to avoid a potential collision,” Sheriff Gootkin said.
