Carriage Horse Hits 4 Parked Cars, Falls On West Side Highway: Cops

MIDTOWN, NY — A Central Park carriage horse ran loose in Midtown and Hell's Kitchen on Sunday afternoon after getting spooked, dragging the driver and smashing into several parked cars until falling on the West Side Highway, police said.

The horse, a 15-year-old named Gunner according to the New York Post, got loose when the owner stopped to fix the busted canopy of the carriage on West 55th Street between 10th and 11th avenues at about 3 p.m., officials said.

As the driver was working on the canopy, something spooked the horse, causing it to take off, running towards the Hudson River, police said.

The owner was dragged along while the "agitated" horse smashed into four packed cars until the carriage became detached, officials said.

With its harness still attached, Gunner then ran onto the West Side Highway where he fell, police said.

Two off-duty NYPD officers assigned to the mounted unit were nearby and were able to respond immediately and help the injured horse, ultimately helping to load him onto a trailer, according to officials.

Gunner was brought to the Clinton Stables where he was treated for a leg injury and multiple cuts.

A long-time activist group working to ban horse carriages from Central Park, NYCLASS, posted an image of the horse collapsed in traffic on the West Side Highway, writing that "this cruelty and public safety nightmare needs to end."

"This is another prime example of why New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and Mayor Eric Adams must take swift action to fast-track and pass legislation to remove cruel and unsafe horse carriages from Midtown streets," Edita Birnkrant, the Executive Director of NYCLASS, told the New York Post.