Another Tragic Snowmobile Death, This Time In Fulton County

Another tragic snowmobile accident in New York. This latest incident claimed the life of a New Jersey man while riding in Fulton County.

The winter of 2025/2026 has been brutal with New York's Capital Region, for example, blanketed with layers and layers of snow. That is a headache to those who prefer warmer weather and happiness to those who love winter activities. Sometimes those activities lead to tragedy, as has been the case several times this season.

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On Friday February 20th at approximately 11pm, New York State Police responded to a reported snowmobile accident on a trail in the town of Caroga Lake.

The preliminary investigation revealed that 54-year-old Stephen J. Banks of Cream Ridge, New Jersey, was operating a snowmobile when it failed to negotiate a curve in the trail and struck a tree. Members of the Caroga Lake Fire Department performed life saving measures, and St. Johnsville Ambulance transported Banks to Nathan Littauer Hospital in Gloversville where he was pronounced deceased.

On Monday February 2nd, State Police responded to a report of a snowmobile crash in the town of Russia, NY. The initial investigation showed that a single snowmobile with one operator was traveling on a secondary trail. Somewhere along this trail the operator veered off the trail and struck a tree.

Read more; Snowmobile Tragedy Claims Life of Teenage Boy

The 16-year-old involved in this incident lost his life.

On Sunday February 8th, a teenaged boy lost his life while snowmobiling in Herkimer County. The investigation determined that a boy lost control of his machine when it struck a log pile ejecting 17-year-old operator Steven J. Gregorie. Traveling behind Gregorie was a 16-year-old friend. The 16-year-old also lost control and left the marked trail striking the same pile of logs and he was ejected.

The second machine came to rest on top of Gregorie. The teenaged boy was rushed to the hospital but was pronounced deceased.