According to provincial law for Newfoundland and Labrador, a 14-year old can drive a snowmobile but only if being directly supervised by an adult. It appears that in remote communities, however, this is commonly ignored, and snowmobiles are regarded more the way we regard bicycles - an essential means of transportation for the young.

My concern is that the parents, community leaders, some opposition politicians and many members of the general public are resisting any calls to crack down on teenagers being allowed to travel alone on snowmobiles through uninhabited terrain without adequate survival gear and training; instead, they are focusing on the fact that the military didn't immediately respond by sending a SAR helicopter from Goose Bay or Gander (the nearest military SAR bases).