Death of funeral horse Wil turned life upside down
THE owner of the horse which was killed when a car collided with a funeral procession last year has spoken about how the incident has turned his life “upside down”.
Mark Evans, who runs a horse drawn carriage service, said the loss of his horse Wil has had long-lasting effects on his health and that of his family.
Wil died last February when a car crashed into a funeral procession on its way to Coychurch Crematorium in Bridgend.
Mr Evans, 59, from Llangadog, Carmarthenshire, said that he has lost work and income and may have to give up his home following the incident.
He said: “It turned life upside down for us and taken away our way of life. We lived around our work.
“We had made our financial arrangements around the fact I would be working until I was at retirement age.
“We originally had four horses. One died of natural causes and we’re having difficulty replacing it because you can’t just go to the shop and get one.
“Horses have to be spot on for this kind of work.
“The horses we have can cope with 21st century roads; it is 21st century drivers that cannot.”
“I was not in a physical or mental state to work,” he said.
Mr Evans, who was thrown from the carriage by the impact, said that he has lost lots of business through being unable to work.
“If I was 20 years younger I might have carried on and it would be a different situation, but when you are not working people take your business.
“I had spent years building it up.”
A investigation by South Wales Police found that no one was at fault for the incident.
Mr Evans however is not happy with the way the investigation was conducted and has sent a formal complaint to the police professional standards department.
A South Wales Police spokeswoman said: “South Wales Police has received a complaint about this incident.
“Further information has only recently been provided by the complainant which will allow the matter to be investigated.”
The British Horse Society launched a road safety campaign called Dead Slow following Wil’s death, which encourages drivers on the correct and safest way to pass horses on the road.
“We have certainly found solace in the fact he did not die in vain,” said Mr Evans.