WILTON — A local man was in critical condition Friday after being thrown from his personal watercraft Thursday on Wilson Pond.

Bertrand Poisson, 47, was operating his recently purchased 2024 Ski-Doo at high speeds and in a back-and-forth serpentine fashion with little experience, Mark Latti, spokesman for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, said in a news release. At one point as he was turning he was thrown and tumbled across the water at high speed about 5:30 p.m., he said.

Poisson immediately began yelling for help and several boaters and witnesses responded. They were able to pull him from the water and take him to the boat landing where emergency medical personnel performed lifesaving measures as he struggled to breathe, Latti said.

Poisson was taken to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston where he remains in critical condition, Latti said.

“The initial investigation reveals that speed, alcohol and marijuana appear to have contributed to the crash,” he said. “The crash remains under investigation.”

The Maine Warden Service was assisted by the Wilton Police Department, NorthStar EMS ambulance personnel and emergency medical personnel from LifeFlight, which did not transport him.