39-Year-Old Massachusetts Woman Killed In Snowmobile Crash In Milan,NH

MILAN, NH – A call was received Friday by emergency services that a woman had sustained serious injuries after being involved in a single-vehicle snowmobile crash. The initial call and information gave a GPS coordinate location on Primary Trail 109 in Milan.

Berlin Police Department, Berlin Fire, Berlin EMS, Milan, Dummer Ambulance, and Milan Fire and Rescue responded to the call. NH Fish and Game was notified of the incident at about 4:30 p.m.

A Conservation Officer responded to the call from Lancaster. The Conservation Officer plotted the GPS coordinates that were received from 911 on the New Hampshire Snowmobile Association (NHSA) Snowmobile Trail Map Phone App to get a better idea of the exact location. This Phone App showed that the closest access to the crash scene was from the end of Spruceville Road in Milan.

The Conservation Officer who responded to the call met with two Berlin Police Officers and hiked from the end of Spruceville Road to the scene. These three officers met with all the rescue crew members on the scene. The three officers assisted the rescue crew in getting the patient into Berlin Fire’s Tracked Rescue UTV.

The patient was identified at the scene as Shawnee Hollis, 39, of North Brookfield, Massachusetts. Hollis was riding with three friends at the crash, all operating their own sleds. Hollis was also second in the group of four on her own individual sled.

Investigation at the scene showed that Hollis failed to navigate a downhill left turn while traveling east on Primary Trail 109. The snowmobile that Hollis was operating struck a tree approximately thirteen feet off the right side of the trail.

Hollis was transported from the scene to a Milan and Dummer Ambulance staged at Spruceville Road. Multiple attempts were made to get an emergency helicopter and fixed-wing air ambulance to assist with the emergency. Due to many circumstances, they were not able to fly.

Hollis was transported by Milan Dummer Ambulance to Androscoggin Valley Hospital (AVH). At some point, during the night of the crash or early morning of February 17, 2024, Hollis was transported from AVH to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center.

At approximately on Saturday at 1:45 a.m. Hollis succumbed to her injuries.

Conservation Officers say Inexperience is the leading factor in the crash.