An Irish tourist on holiday in Wyoming had her leg crushed beneath her horse when the trail leader accidentally used bear spray on her mount.
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Lorraine Learmont and her husband were on a horseback outing through Triangle C Ranch. She considered herself to be an intermediate rider, while her husband was a beginner. They were riding comfortably, and Learmont had already displayed the ability to keep the horse under control.
Previously in the ride, the horse had gotten a little skittish. However, she had stayed calm and brought it back under control, according to the documents included in the lawsuit.
The lead horse wrangler, heading up the pack, kept bear spray in the same pouch as their water. They repeatedly reached for the bottle to take a drink. As the group came to a stop to take some photos, a huge mix-up occurred.
"Rather than grab her water bottle, the lead wrangler engaged the bear spray into the eyes of Ms. Learmont's horse," it states in the lawsuit.
Bear Spray Causes Horse To Panic
The accident caused the horse to lose its mind, of course. "Ms. Learmont's horse bucked wildly, shaking its head due to the effect of the bear spray. It then fell backward with Ms. Learmont," it says in the lawsuit. "The horse crushed Ms. Learmont's foot during the ordeal, causing permanent and irreparable crush injuries to her ankle."
According to the document, the wrangler immediately admitted that the horse would not have bucked if it wasn't for the bear spray. They rushed Learmont to the hospital, where she was treated for her injuries. She suffered a crushed and broken ankle and was put into a boot.
On her return to Ireland, she was admitted to hospital where the damage could be properly examined. "It was determined that Ms. Learmont suffered a blunt force crushing injury to her ankle, destroying her cartilage and rendering it unrecoverable."
For 28 days, she had to remain in care. Even now, she continues to suffer from limited mobility. She has been in rehabilitation for her crushed ankle since. Her lawsuit looks to claim $75,000 from Tringle C. Ranch.
