An 18-year-old teenager has died after being thrown from a horse-drawn carriage in Central Park on Wednesday, the New York Police Department confirmed. The incident occurred just before 3 p.m. when the horse bolted away from its driver, sending at least two passengers flying from the careening cab.
Details of the Accident
The teenager was riding in the carriage with three other passengers. He was initially hospitalized in critical condition but later succumbed to his injuries. The other passengers refused medical treatment at the scene.
Alexander Kemp, administrative vice-president of the local Transport Workers Union chapter, which represents carriage industry employees, stated that the driver had dismounted to take a photograph of his passengers—an action that is not permitted. The horse had only been in the park for six weeks. Kemp called for a full investigation, noting that safety in the park has been a growing concern.
Video Evidence
Video footage shows the horse sprinting through the park as two people appear to jump from the four-wheeled carriage. A second video captures the cab toppling over after clipping the wheels of another carriage on the park's busy loop.
Industry Under Scrutiny
The accident comes at a fraught moment for Central Park's 150-year-old horse-drawn carriage industry. Long seen as a quaint tourist attraction offering a romantic glimpse of old New York, the industry provides hundreds of jobs and homes for many farm and racing horses. However, opponents argue that the rides are inhumane to horses and dangerous to city residents, pushing for a ban.
Wednesday's event follows the fatal collapse of a horse in the park last week. The Central Park Conservancy, the nonprofit that operates the park and supports banning horse-drawn carriages, stated that these back-to-back incidents should end the industry. "A young man came to enjoy our park and lost his life. That is not an acceptable cost of an antiquated industry operating in the middle of one of the most heavily used public spaces in America," the group said in a statement.
Central Park spans nearly 850 acres and attracts millions of visitors annually.
