Selawik girl injured in snowmobile accident

KOTZEBUE (AP) -- A Selawik man was charged with driving while intoxicated and assault after a sled he was pulling behind a snowmobile struck and injured a 9-year-old girl.

Freddie Pete, 36, was charged after the accident Saturday.

Alaska State Troopers said Pete was making food deliveries on a Polaris snowmobile owned by his employer, Selawik Native Store.

He drove onto the Selawik River and was heading toward the Selawik River bridge when he looked over his shoulder to check on the sled he was pulling. When Pete looked forward again, he saw Thomasina Shannon running to get out of his way, troopers said.

Pete turned sharply but the sled hit the girl. She was flown to Anchorage to have her leg examined by a specialist.

A village public safety officer detected alcohol on Pete's breath and administered sobriety tests.

Selawik is at the mouth of the Selawik River where it empties into Selawik Lake about 70 miles southeast of Kotzebue and 670 miles northwest of Anchorage.