A toddler narrowly missing being crushed when a rider lost control of their horse during the scurry jumping at Dunster Country Fair, Somerset (24 July).
The horse crashed into a 4X4 parked by the side of the ring. The rider fell off onto the car bonnet and then onto the floor, knocking the sleeping child out of the buggy.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
Gilly Davidson of www.HorseEventsUK.com was the photographer at the show who captured the sequence of events.
“I could see there could be problems when the horse started to go,” said Gilly.
“It bolted towards the perimeter where the spectators were. The rider went over its head and onto the bonnet of a parked Land Rover.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
“But then she fell into a pram with a sleeping tot in next to the car.
“The child fell on to the floor while the horse struggled to keep its feet. The hooves were just a matter of inches from them both.”
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(Image credit: creditUnknown)
No-one was injured in the incident, which happened during the 35th edition of the family show.
“It all happened so quickly and was over in seconds,” Gilly added.
“In the end there were no injuries but it was very, very close. It doesn’t bear thinking about what could have happened.”
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Sophia Heath joined Horse & Hound in July 2013 having previously worked for the Daily Telegraph's Olympics website, CNN International and Omnisport. A Durham graduate with a Masters in journalism from City University, Sophia has evented, showjumped and hunted. Sophia left Horse & Hound in early 2015 to join an international boating website.
