FLORIDA — A 15-calendar year-aged equestrian was killed during a competitors in Florida immediately after her horse fell on her head, officials say.
The accident transpired as Hannah Serfass was driving her 12-12 months-previous horse in a hunter/jumper occasion Sunday at Fox Lea Farm in Venice, the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Business office mentioned in a report.
The horse, a Holsteiner gelding named Quaxx, experienced a “rotational tumble,” the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF) mentioned in a news release.
“The rider was about halfway through the program and had just built the # 6 leap. The horse landed the jump successfully and took 2 or 3 steps/gallops in the direction of the next hurdle and for not known explanations planted its still left entrance hoof which induced the horse to lean down considerably toward its still left front hoof,” the sheriff’s workplace report stated.
Serfass and the horse then started falling in the very same path, with the horse “falling more than and onto the rider’s head on the ground,” the report reported.
An EMT responded instantly and Serfass was taken to Sarasota Memorial Clinic where she was pronounced useless, the USEF launch claimed. The horse was unhurt.
Serfass “was a extremely talented up-and-coming young rider” from Webster, Florida, the USEF explained. “She was recognized for her enthusiasm for horses, her purely natural capacity, and her function ethic.”
“She confirmed absolutely nothing but dedication and really like to this activity,” a verified GoFundMe memorial web site claimed of Serfass.
“We send our sincere condolences to the spouse and children, trainer, friends, & the whole equestrian group. We are all heartbroken,” Fox Lea Farm stated in a statement on Facebook.
The USEF will be examining the incident “to master what we can do to limit possibility and raise basic safety in equestrian activity,” it reported in its launch.
Thanks for reading CBS NEWS.
Create your free account or log in
for more features.
