Situations in which a falling item kills a worker aren’t that uncommon. But in this case, the thing that fell was alive.
Handler Robert Shields was killed when a horse reared up and tumbled over on top of him at Tampa Bay Downs in Florida. The force of the horse’s fall crushed him.
Shields was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. The horse wasn’t injured.
Handlers wear helmets and protective jackets when working with the horses.
Tampa City Council member Charlie Miranda works at the racetrack. He says even with the safety gear, handlers, groomers and jockeys suffer injuries. Miranda told the St. Petersburg Times he was hospitalized for 18 days after an accident involving a horse.
