The sled canine workforce that collided with a snowmachine on the Denali Highway final week was a part of five-time Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey’s famend kennel.
Two dogs died and the remaining seven suffered accidents starting from critical to minor, Seavey mentioned in a broadly shared social media post Wednesday.
The collision occurred close to Mile 118 of the 135-mile freeway, a preferred space to run canine groups together with for these coaching for races just like the Iditarod or Yukon Quest.
Seavey mentioned he and two different mushers had been coaching with three of his groups on the freeway when the nine-dog workforce was hit by a snowmachine approaching from the wrong way at a excessive fee of velocity. He mentioned one canine died immediately, one had a number of damaged legs and died inside an hour, and three suffered compound fractures or legs almost amputated by the impression. The remaining 4 had what Seavey described as comparatively minor accidents.
The musher concerned “had some bruising and a cut” however was in any other case not severely harm, Seavey wrote. The snowmachiners stopped, he mentioned.
Of the injured dogs, one has had a leg amputated however is steady, one has been by surgical procedure, and one wants an amputation however has irritation in his lungs that makes surgical procedure too dangerous for now, Seavey mentioned.
Alaska State Troopers initially reported the incident over the weekendsaying it occurred round 8:30 p.m. Friday, however didn’t establish the mushers concerned or present further particulars.
On Wednesday, a troopers spokesman recognized the musher driving the sled concerned within the collision as Josiah Liebe however offered little different info.
“At this point in the ongoing investigation, no citations have been issued,” spokesman Tim DeSpain mentioned in an e-mail. He declined to verify particulars disclosed by Seavey, saying they had been a part of the investigation.
The largely gravel Denali Highway leads from Paxson on the Richardson Highway to Cantwell on the Parks Highway and offered the only road access to Denali National Park earlier than the Parks Highway was accomplished within the early Seventies.
The 36-year-old Seavey is tied with Rick Swenson for essentially the most Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race victories at 5. He placed second to Brent Sass within the 2022 Iditarod, and mentioned that 12 months he deliberate to take a break from the race.
Seavey lives in Talkeetna the place he operates a sled canine tourism business. He’s developed a world fan base in his years mushing as a part of a household with a storied legacy within the sport. His Facebook publish Wednesday attracted greater than 630 feedback in only a few hours.
Numerous mushers have reported collisions with motorized autos over the years, as improvement and visitors encroach on mushing trails in Alaska. Iditarod veteran Karin Hendrickson broke her again in a collision alongside the Parks Highway close to Willow in 2014. Last 12 months, musher Jaye Foucher misplaced one canine and noticed a number of others injured after a pickup drove by the workforce throughout a coaching run in Willow.
