Trapped Horses Rescued At Lithia Stables Of Coast Guard Member

LITHIA, FL -- Six horses were trapped at a Lithia stable owned by a furloughed Coast Guard employee and his wife when the early-morning thunderstorms toppled a large tree onto the barn.

Kate Wells Waterford, owner of Waterford Stables on Pelote Cemetery Road, sent out a plea on Facebook Thursday morning asking for help rescuing the horses.

Shortly after, neighbors arrived with three tractors, a Bobcat and chain saws to assist Hillsborough County Fire Rescue heavy rescue team.

Waterford said one horse was able to escape on its own and the remaining horses were freed about an hour later.

"We had to manually take the stalls apart to avoid machinery noise startling the already upset animals," said the Hillsborough Fire Rescue spokesman. "But we got them out of the crushed barn in good shape. One sustained minor scratches and was left in the care of a veterinarian."

"All I can say is God is good," said Waterford.

Waterford said she and her husband, Albert, were asleep when they heard the sound of the tree crashing onto the barn. They feared the horses in the barn had been crushed and were relieved to find all of the horses alive but trapped.

The Waterfords had recently relocated their family-owned stables to a 10-acre farm on Pelote Cemetery Road and were looking forward to building a large, state-of-the-art barn with an indoor arena in the fall.

Between this morning's disaster and the loss of income due to the federal government shutdown, the Waterfords may now have to put those plans on hold.

Images via Hillsborough County Fire Rescue

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