Graduate killed in horse fall on dream holiday
A YOUNG woman was killed on a dream holiday in Africa after falling from a horse and being dragged 300ft with her foot caught in the stirrup. Gemma Wilson, 24, died in the arms of her boyfriend, James Langton, who had been planning to propose on the final night of the holiday.
Mr Langton now wears the ring on a chain around his neck.
Miss Wilson’s horse bolted during a mountain trek with a small party of tourists. An inquest heard none of the 11 people on the trip had been wearing helmets and witnesses said they were not offered any.
Miss Wilson, named BT’s Star Graduate after joining the firm with a combined first class degree, was dragged along rocky terrain after her horse tripped on a mountain
‘Failed to provide basic care’
path in Lesotho. She eventually fell facefirst into a ditch, unconscious and suffering from massive head and back injuries which included bleeding on the brain.
Yesterday, her mother, Jean Clarke, accused tour company Imaginative Traveller of putting ‘profits before safety’ and urged others planning to book with the company to ‘ think twice’. Following the hearing, her father Stuart, who is divorced from Mrs Clarke, said he did not accept evidence his daughter was likely to have died even if she had been wearing a safety helmet.
The Nottingham inquest heard that tour guides had not been issued with first aid kits or training, or even mobile phones.
When the hospital was contacted, using a fellow tourist’s phone, it did not send a helicopter for four hours, until guides had broken in to lockers to get Miss Wilson’s insurance details. Mrs Clarke, 53, said Mr Langton spent almost four hours performing mouth-to-mouth while trying to stem the flow of blood from his partner’s head wounds.
Although travellers were advised before their holidays to take helmets if they wanted to wear one, Mr Langton, who lives in Selby, North Yorkshire, told the inquest he saw helmets hanging in the stables when they set off on the overnight trek to a mountain village. He added: ‘ This was a trip aimed at novice riders and I can say with 100 per cent certainty we were not given any instructions on how to ride the horse.’
The accident occurred the next day as they returned to their lodge from the trek in November 2009.
Consultant neurosurgeon Ian Robertson told the inquest Miss Wilson would probably have died even if she had been taken to hospital within 30 minutes. While a helmet may have lessened the initial impact, he said it would not have prevented the injuries caused by being dragged along.
Delivering a narrative verdict, Nottinghamshire Deputy Coroner Heidi Connor said: ‘The evidence is clear that this was not horses riding in a straight line over stable terrain. This was something significantly more risky than that.’
Mrs Clarke said the evidence showed the company ‘failed to provide the most basic care to the people travelling with them’. Martyn Shapter, of Peak Adventure Travel Group, which owned Imaginative Traveller at the time, said they expected guides would have given advice and have first aid training.
But the trek, which was provided by a local firm, was not considered to be high-risk.
Dragoman Overseas, the current owner of Imaginative Traveller, now provides the tours in-house.