Snowmobiler dies in crash with truck in New Portland

A man driving a snowmobile died Friday night in New Portland after a truck collided with his snowmobile while he was crossing Route 27, police said.

Robert J. Peavey, 57, of Gloucester, Mass., was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, which was reported about 6:15 p.m. Friday, according to a news release from the Somerset County Sheriff’s Department.

Leroy Hiscock, 69, of Livermore Falls, was driving a 2004 Ford F-150 pickup truck south on Route 27 when the snowmobile came off a trail in the woods and tried to cross the state route, police said. Peavey, driving a 2003 Rotax 600 Ski-Doo snowmobile, was hit by the truck, which couldn’t stop in time, police said.

Also in Hiscock’s truck were a 7-year-old boy and two dogs. The crash impact killed one of the dogs, police said.

Hiscock was treated at Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington, and the boy suffered no injuries.

Somerset deputies Cpl. Eugene Cole and Don Avery responded to the crash. The snowmobile was destroyed and the truck sustained extensive front-end damage.