Man And Woman Killed In Candia When UTV Crashes Into A Tree

CANDIA, NH — Candia fire, police, and New Hampshire Fish and Game responded to a Utility Terrain Vehicle (UTV) crash on private property in an area off Chester Road in Candia on Sunday.

Several responders arrived at the scene at about 7:30 p.m. where they found a UTV had struck a tree. Rescue personnel found the passengers Renee Shankle, 50, of Candia, and Alan Juza, 62, of Goffstown had succumbed to injuries from the crash.

Fish and Game say the UTV was operated by James Shankle 48 years old from Candia, he was transported to Elliot Hospital in Manchester for observation.

Fish and Game said the cause of the crash continues to be investigated.

In June a UTV struck a tree in Auburn killing a man and a woman in the crash.

On Saturday, Fish and Game responded to three separate ATV and UTV rollovers in the course of three hours. Two crashes occurred in Jericho State Park in Berlin and the final one occurred on the Presidential Rail Trail in Gorham.

The first incident occurred at approximately 11:30 a.m. on Brook Road in Jericho State Park. Michael Ryan, 31, of Gloucester, Massachusetts, was operating his rental ATV on Brook Road, 2nd in a group of three rental machines. He came around a downhill corner on Brook Road and hit his brakes, causing him to lose control of his machine, which rolled over and pinned him against the ground.

After a 911 call was placed, an emergency response was initiated by Berlin Fire and EMS and NH Fish and Game Conservation Officers. Upon evaluating his injuries, first responders determined that Ryan needed more urgent immediate care, and so a call to the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Advanced Response Team (DHART) helicopter was placed and they responded to pick up Ryan at Androscoggin Valley Hospital after he was transported there by Berlin Ambulance. He was later transported by DHART helicopter to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon with serious injuries.

After interviewing the riding party and Ryan himself, unreasonable speed and inexperience are considered the primary factors in the crash. Ryan admitted to officers that he had been operating too quickly before he crashed according to Conservation Officers.

The second crash that Fish and Game responded to occurred around 2:00 PM on Moose Road in Jericho State Park. Nicole Levesque, 36, of Milton was following another ATV on Moose Road. According to witnesses and evidence at the scene, Levesque got the wheels of her ATV caught in a rut in the trails which caused her to get pushed into a ditch where the machine rolled over onto her causing a severe injury. Another ATV operator from a different party found Levesque and called 911.

An emergency response consisting of Berlin Fire and EMS and a Conservation Officer was initiated. After evaluation of Levesque’s injuries, it was determined that once again, they would need to get her to more immediate urgent care, so responders requested that the DHART helicopter respond. Levesque was transported from the scene to Androscoggin Valley Hospital by Berlin Ambulance, where she was picked up by the DHART helicopter for transport to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center.

Investigators consider operator inexperience to be the primary cause of this crash.

Upon clearing the previous crash scene, the Conservation Officer was immediately notified of another ATV rollover, this time on the Presidential Rail Trail in Gorham. Gorham Fire and Rescue and the Conservation Officer rushed to the scene to assist the patient, identified as Henry Sanschagrin, 74, of Gorham.

It was determined that Sanschagrin was operating his UTV on the rail trail and decided to pull off the side of the trail to let another ATV pass. While doing this he accidentally pulled too far to the right which caused his UTV to rollover down an embankment.

Oncoming ATVs stopped to assist Sanschagrin and his wife, who was in the passenger seat and called 911. Sanschagrin and his wife were transported to Androscoggin Valley Hospital for evaluation for any injuries by Gorham Fire and Rescue. It is believed that operator inattention is the cause of this crash.

The final crash of the day occurred on Farr Road in Pittsburg when an ATV operator identified as Karen Lane, 59, of Jaffrey rolled her ATV over, reportedly to prevent hitting a gate. Due to the fact that there were three other ATV crashes, plus a SAR rescue mission going on and only three Conservation Officers on duty in Coos County, they did not respond to this crash.

Pittsburg PD assisted by covering this crash. Lane was transported to Upper Connecticut Valley Hospital in Colebrook, where DHART was called to transport the patient. Speed and inattention are the contributing factors in this crash.

Investigators do not consider alcohol or drug intoxication a factor in any of these crashes. NH Fish and Game would like to remind operators to always operate within their limits and obey all posted speed limits and slow down while enjoying New Hampshire’s numerous ATV trails.

As information becomes available Patch will update this post.