Three men were seriously hurt in two separate snowmobile crashes around noon Tuesday that the Maine Warden Service attributed to excessive speed.

The first crash involved a head-on collision between snowmobiles driven by 24-year-old Ryan Jones of Jefferson and 52-year-old Michael Ouellette of Topsham in Tim Pond Township in Franklin County. The men, both of whom were wearing helmets, suffered serious injuries and their machines sustained major damage, according to a statement issued by Cpl. John MacDonald of the warden service.

Ouellette had to be transported by a LifeFlight helicopter to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, and Jones was taken to Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington for injuries to his shoulder and face. Ouellette’s condition was not available Tuesday night.

In the second crash, 55-year-old Dean Dunton of Casco was operating his 2003 Arctic Cat on a section of trail in Casco near a pipeline when he struck unevenly packed snow and was ejected from his machine. Dunton was taken by LifeFlight to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston where he was listed in good condition by a nursing supervisor.

The warden service says there have been six snowmobile-related fatalities this season.

“With great conditions and thousands of people taking to the trails, Maine game wardens are urging snowmobilers to slow down,” the Warden Service said in a statement. “Contributing factors to many fatal and life-threatening crashes here in Maine continue to involve excessive speeds.”

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