An elderly woman in her 70s was kicked by a horse and had to be airlifted to hospital.
It happened in the village of Borris in Co Carlow, Ireland yesterday as preparations were under way for the annual Borris Horse Fair, which was held today.
The woman was injured by the horse at around 8.15pm on Main Street, the Irish Mirror reports.
Ambulance services from Kilkenny and Carlow along with local gardai attended the scene. A rescue helicopter based at Waterford airport was called to the incident and flew the injured woman to University Hospital Waterford (UHW).
Officers are trying to ascertain why the woman was in the vicinity of where the horses were being kept.
A garda spokesperson said: “Gardaí attended the scene of an incident that occurred at approximately 20:15pm on the Main Street, in Borris, Co Carlow.
“A female in her 70s received injuries from a horse and was taken to University Hospital Waterford for injuries which are believed to be non-life threatening. Investigations ongoing.”
Hundreds of people gathered for this year’s fair - the first to be held in three years due to the pandemic.
The Borris fair sees horse dealers from across the country meet on August 15, which is a Catholic Church holy day of the Feast of the Assumption.
As well as horses, ponies and sheep for sale, fair goers can buy clothes, electrical goods, hardware, furniture and toys at stalls which all line Main Street.
Motorists have been banned from entering the village for the past two days and access to the village is for pedestrians only.
The Fair has drawn a lot of criticism in the past due to the cost of the clean-up operation in the past. It has cost Carlow County Council upwards of €16,000 to clear rubbish in the Fair aftermath.
In recent years, engagement with traveller organisations has brought the fair back from the brink of ending.
In 2009 the post-fair focus was on the rubbish left on the streets and not cleaned up by the local authority in a timely fashion.
