A Hammond man was
seriously injured on Thursday in a snowmobile accident near Wolf Lake, just
on the other side of the Illinois state line, the Indiana Department of
Natural Resources said.
The victim was
identified as William Moen, 31.
According to the
DNR, late Thursday evening Moen was traveling southbound at a high rate of
speed along a Wolf Lake access lane, 150 feet inside Illinois, when for
unknown reasons he failed to negotiate a curve, struck a guard rail, and was
launched from his Yamaha Phaser approximately 35 feet across an ice-covered
channel.
Conservation
officers were dispatched to the scene to assist EMS personnel, who “were
having difficulty reaching the victim due to the remove area of the crash,”
the DNR said. “Once conservation officers arrived on scene they traveled
through deep snow to the crash site utilizing a snowmobile and off-road
utility vehicle.”
Moen was air-lifted
to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Ill., where he underwent
surgery for a broken pelvis, fractured lower back, and internal bleeding.
“Moen's helmet was
found spilt in half,” the DNR said. “The helmet saved him from a serious
head injury and most likely his life.”
After Indiana
conservation officers determined that the crash occurred in Illinois, the
investigation was turned over to that state’s DNR.