A Central Park carriage horse breaks free and critically injures a passenger

NEW YORK (AP) — An 18-year-old was critically injured Wednesday after a Central Park carriage horse bolted away from its driver, sending at least two passengers flying out of its careening cab, according to officials and videos.

A spokesperson for the New York Police Department confirmed the 18-year-old was riding in the horse-drawn carriage with three other passengers when he was thrown to the ground just before 3 p.m.

He was hospitalized in critical condition, police said. The other passengers refused medical treatment.

A representative for the Transport Workers Union, which represents carriage industry employees, said the horse had been in the park for only six weeks.

The driver had dismounted to take a photograph of his passengers, according to Alexander Kemp, the administrative vice president of the union's local chapter.

“A driver is not supposed to leave the carriage to take photos — ever," Kemp said. “We support a full investigation.”

Video showed the horse sprinting through the park as two people appeared to jump from the four-wheeled carriage. A second video shows the cab toppling over after clipping the wheels of another carriage on the park's busy loop.

It's a fraught moment for Central Park's 150-year-old horse-drawn carriage industry, which is facing the growing threat of a ban from opponents who say the rides are both inhumane to horses and a danger to city residents.

Wednesday's event follows several recent horse-related problems in the park, including the fatal collapse of a horse last week.

The Central Park Conservancy, the nonprofit which operates the park and came out last summer in support of banning horse-drawn carriages, said the back-to-back events should bring an end to the industry.

“That this frightening situation is just days after the previous one underscores the dangers posed by horse carriages to Park visitors, carriage drivers, and the horses themselves,” the group said in a statement. “We hope today’s injuries are the last we ever see.”