DUNCAN TOWNSHIP — A Wisconsin man has become the region’s first fatal snowmobile accident of the new year.

The crash occurred just before 5 p.m. Sunday on Trail 8 between M-38 and Kitchie Point Road in Houghton County’s Duncan Township, according to a news release from the Houghton County Sheriff’s Office.

The 63-year-old snowmobile operator, whose name was not released, was pronounced dead at the site. Speed and alcohol are believed to have been factors in the crash, according to the news release.

The Houghton County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by Michigan State Police, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, the Duncan Township Fire Department, Bay Ambulance and Dynamite Towing.

State police at the Negaunee Regional Communications Center said they believe the fatality is the first in the Upper Peninsula in 2025.