Steuben County dairy farmer killed in weekend snowmobile crash near Adirondacks

Jeff Murray, The Leader
·2 min read

A Steuben County man is dead following a snowmobile crash Saturday in Lewis County, east of Watertown in northern New York.

The Lewis County Sheriff's Office identified the victim as Dean C. Cole, 54, of Lewis Road in Cameron Mills.

The crash occurred shortly before 5:30 p.m. Saturday on Trail C5A (Flat Rock Road) in the town of Martinsburg, the sheriff's office said.

Dean Cole
Dean Cole

Cole was westbound on a 2023 Polaris Assault 350 snowmobile when for some reason he exited the north side of the trail and struck a tree, deputies said.

Witnesses who were nearby immediately attended to Cole and performed CPR until emergency responders arrived.

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Cole was transported to the emergency department at Lewis County General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

New York State Police assisted at the scene, along with Lewis County Search & Rescue and Martinsburg Fire.

Cole ran a dairy farm on Lewis Road in Cameron Mills, where he lived with his wife, Mary, according to longtime neighbor Janie Ferguson, who said the small, rural community south of Bath is in shock.

"We considered Dean a friend, and a good neighbor, too. He is a hard worker, and I would describe him as a laid-back kind of fellow," Ferguson said.

"We have kind of a bartering system set up with them, as many country folks do. We do for them, and they in turn have done for us, too," she said. "Cameron Mills is a tight-knit small hamlet, and all of Cameron Mills grieves with them over his loss."

Tina Abbey of Addison grew up in that area and went to school with Cole's children.

"I used to hang with his family up at their family pond and go help on the farm every once in a while," Abbey said. "I can say he was a family man and loved his farm and running it with his wife and three kids.

"My prayers are with the family and friends as they go through this difficult time," Abbey wrote on her Facebook page. "R.I.P. Dean Cole, you will missed by so many."

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This article originally appeared on The Leader: Steuben County man dies in weekend snowmobile crash in Lewis County