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By: Erin Smith
An afternoon of horseback riding on Saturday ended with one rider going to the hospital and a round-up of one horse. Bladen County Emergency Services Director Bradley Kinlaw said that a group of horseback riders were enjoying the warm weather on Saturday afternoon on some land across from Singletary Lake State Park when the incident ocurred.
Kinlaw said one of the horses became agitated and began to buck tossing the rider to the ground. He said the rider, who was about three-quarters of a mile off the roadway in the woods, broke his femur and had to be airlifted to New Hanover Regional Medical Center. NC 53 was closed for a brief period of time to allow the helicopter to land, said Kinlaw.
Kinlaw said the White Lake Fire Department used an ATV and a trailer that carries a stretcher to transport the rider from the accident scene deep in the woods to the waiting helicopter. He added the equipment was purchased by the fire department for use in these types of incidents. Had the fire department not had this type of equipment, rescuers would have had to walk and carry the stretcher with the victim out of the woods.
“In addition, we spent Saturday afternoon and Sunday locating the horse. We located it on Sunday night,”said Kinlaw.
He added that the effort to assist in locating the wayward horse is just one of many things that folks don’t realize firefighters often do.
Other agencies responding to the incident included the White Lake Police Department, the Bladen County Sheriff’s Office, Singletary Lake State Park, White Lake Fire Department, and Elizabethtown Rescue Squad.
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