CONTACT:
Conservation Officer Matthew Holmes
603-788-4850
603-271-3361
October 10, 2022

Millsfield, NH – On the afternoon of Friday, October 7, Conservation Officers, Police Officers, Fire Fighters, and EMS personnel from throughout the Androscoggin River Valley responded to assist multiple people who were involved in Off Highway Recreational Vehicle (OHRV) crashes.

At approximately 2:30 p.m., Fish and Game received a 911 call from Millsfield indicating that a UTV (Utility Terrain Vehicle or “Side by Side”) had crashed on the Deer Mountain Trail and that a 44-year-old female had been injured in the crash. The caller further reported the involved parties were being transported via other off highway vehicles to Errol.

Because of the call, Errol Fire personnel, along with New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Conservation Officers, mobilized to assist the injured individual and investigate the crash. Responders were ultimately able to locate the involved parties, Richard and Cristine Pjatak of Stratford, CT and transport both to Androscoggin Valley Hospital in Berlin via Errol Ambulance. Both were evaluated and Cristine was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. An investigation at the scene on Deer Mountain lead Conservation Officers to determine that speed was a factor for the crash given the conditions. A summons was issued to the operator of the involved vehicle for this offense.

Dummer, NH – At 3:00 p.m. on the afternoon of Friday, October 7, Conservation Officers and Milan Fire Fighters were requested to respond to Newell Brook Road in the town of Dummer for a two-vehicle UTV crash. Fire personnel were the first to arrive on the scene and determined that no one was injured. Due to the amount of potential vehicle damage involved, a request for law enforcement to continue to the scene to initiate a report was made.

Diverting from a response to the Deer Mountain crash, a Conservation Officer arrived at Newell Brook Road at approximately 4:00 p.m. This scene was located approximately 1.5 miles up Newell Brook Road (a logging road) from Route 16. The involved vehicles had been left in place, and it was determined that both machines had reached the same bridge at the same time, approaching from opposite directions. The bridge was not quite wide enough for both machines, and a collision between their front tires had occurred causing front-end damage to both machines. The involved operators were identified as 61-year-old Ronald Robbins of Keene, NH and 35-year-old Nicholas Fournier of Berlin, NH. Bad timing was certainly a contributing factor to this incident.

While coordinating simultaneous responses to the two aforementioned crashes, Conservation Officers were notified of a third OHRV crash that had occurred on the Presidential Rail Trail in Berlin. Learning that both on-duty Conservation Officers were responding to other incidents, Berlin Police spearheaded an effort to respond to the call. This effort was greatly appreciated by Conservation Officers as it allowed them to continue their pending investigations. The circumstances surrounding this incident are not know to at this time.