Military horses spooked by falling rubble cause ‘mayhem’ in capital

MILITARY horses caused “total mayhem” in central London after they were spooked by builders moving rubble.

A group of seven horses and six soldiers from the Household Cavalry were on an extended exercise in Belgravia yesterday when chaos erupted.

Four service personnel were thrown from their horses and five of the animals got loose, smashing into vehicles and causing a number of injuries.

It is believed the animals were spooked when some concrete being moved by builders hit the ground.

Ambulance crews treated four people in three separate incidents in Buckingham Palace Road, Belgrave Square, and at the junction of Chancery Lane and Fleet Street, in the space of just 10 minutes.

It is understood that three soldiers were assessed in hospital for their injuries, which were not thought to be serious.

A management consultant from south London who saw two of the horses galloping near Aldwych said the sight was “gruesome” and “like a weird dream”.

The pair were captured near Limehouse, more than five miles from where they first bolted.

The drama began near Buckingham Palace Road where witnesses saw a serviceman thrown from his horse, and one of the loose animals crash into a taxi waiting outside the Clermont Hotel, shattering the windows.

LBC spoke to the driver, identified as Faraz, who said a white horse had collided with his Mercedes people carrier, leaving blood spattered down the side.

Another of the animals crashed into a tour bus, smashing the windscreen.

Two horses were then seen running in the road near Aldwych, one of which appeared to be covered in blood. Jordan Pettitt, 26, who works for the PA news agency, said a white horse was “vividly” stained red with blood and he heard a black horse collide with a taxi.

He said: “The A4 at the Aldwych is usually pretty busy and it suddenly just fell silent.

“There was no traffic on the roads and all of a sudden we could hear some clattering of hooves just at the top of the road. Then coming down the top of the road were these two horses.

“They were coming down at quite a speed. They bolted southbound down the A4.”

The animals were later seen near the Limehouse Tunnel, before they were recaptured by City of London Police and taken away to be assessed by Army vets.

An Army spokesman said: “All of the horses have now been recovered and returned to camp. A number of personnel and horses have been injured and are receiving the appropriate medical attention.”