2 separate fatal ATV accidents in 24-hour span, RCMP say

Two men have died in separate incidents involving all-terrain vehicles in the last 24 hours, RCMP say, bringing Newfoundland and Labrador's total number of offroad vehicle-related deaths this year to 17.

RCMP in Forteau, in southern Labrador, were called just after 5 p.m. Monday about a man trapped under an ATV.

When officers arrived, they determined the man driving the machine had lost control of the ATV while trying to load it onto the back of a truck.

He died at the scene. Police said he was not wearing a helmet at the time.

Then, just after 3 a.m. Tuesday, RCMP were called to an overturned side-by-side ATV on the old railway bed near Placentia Junction, on Newfoundland's Avalon Peninsula.

Two men were originally trapped under the ATV, but after some time the driver managed to free himself and went on foot to find help.

The passenger died at the scene.

Neither manwaswearing a helmet, RCMP said, and the passenger of the side-by-side was not wearing a seatbelt.

The investigation into that incident is ongoing, RCMP said.

Just last week, the RCMP launched a bigger push to curb what it's calling reckless behaviour, a move being met with acclaim from some ATV riders in the province.

At the time, 15 people had died while operating ATVs and snowmobiles in areas policed by the RCMP across the province since Jan. 1.

By comparison, there were 12 ATV-related deaths in 2019 and 10 in 2018.

"I find these numbers personally alarming,"Assistant Commissioner Ches Parsons, commanding officer of the RCMPin Newfoundland and Labrador, said at the time, calling thecasualty rate "extreme."

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