NH Horse Owner In Critical Condition After Out Of Control Hayride
Hampton Falls, NH (CBS) - Six people were injured when a horse drawn hayride got out of control in Hampton Falls. One of the victims owns the horses and is still in critical condition at a Boston Hospital. Her husband says she risked her life to save the riders.
"It was a bad scene, a bad, bad scene," said Lloyd Perkins.
Perkins and his wife spend every weekend pulling the horse drawn hayrides at Apple Crest Farm. Sunday, things went terribly wrong. A part of the yoke came loose sending the wagon full of families rolling downhill and spooking the huge draft horses.
WBZ-TV's Lauren Leamanczyk reports
"When the wagon hit the back of the horses, they started to run," Perkins explained.
Lloyd was knocked off the wagon. His wife Joan rushed in front of the horses to try to control them and keep them from running into the crowd.
"I've got 18 people on the wagon and her concern is their safety, trying to stop these horses so they don't keep running and tip the wagon over and everyone gets hurt," Perkins said.
The people on the hayride suffered bumps and bruises. Another wagon driver was hurt more seriously. But Joan was stepped on by a horse and dragged by the wagon. Lloyd says she has a collapsed lung, head trauma and broken bones throughout her body.
At the orchard, the owners are still trying to figure out what went wrong. The Perkins own the horses, but Apple Crest owns the equipment.
"It's still very unclear as to how everything happened," said Todd Wagner whose family owns the Apple Crest Farm. "We don't know how to react to something like this because nothing's ever happened like this."
Lloyd calls it a freak accident. He says his wife reacted as any horse person would have. He just hopes she recovers.
"I wish everyone would say a prayer because she's going to need it right now."
