Inspection Detail

Inspection: 1425116.015 - Mike Harrington

Inspection Information - Office: San Diego District Office

Investigation Summary

At 8:00 a.m. on July 30, 2019, Employee #1 had finished exercising the horse and was walking on the back track along the back stretch near the 3/8th pole. Employee #1 was back track walking, when the horse spooked and reared. The rider became unseated and fell to the ground below and landed on his head on the track footing. The rider was wearing a track approved helmet and no serious accident related citations were issued for the horse rearing. The employee suffered a C-6 fracture and a spinal cord injury leaving little movement and use of the lower extremity. The employer is a horse trainer that races horses. Employee#1 is an exercise rider that was hired while the employer was at the Del Mar Race Track. The race track is broken up into three lanes for exercising horses and can have from 2-500 horses on the track. The inside two lanes are for galloping counter-clockwise. The outside lane is for back trackers, and they can only walk or trot off the track on the outside rail.

Keywords: Fall, Fall From Elevation, Head, Heat Injury Prevention Program, Horse, Vertebra