Carriage Horse Dies on Camera in Central Park

A Central Park carriage horse collapsed and died Tuesday evening, and the fallout at City Hall may arrive just as fast as the backlash in the park. Police said the horse appeared to suffer a medical episode, which was captured on camera, per TMZ. A necropsy is planned at Cornell University to determine the cause of death. The animal was identified by the Transport Workers Union Local 100 as Deniz, a 16-year-old gelding deemed healthy in a March exam by the NYPD Mounted Unit's veterinarian, per the New York Times. Now, the incident is being folded into the long-running fight over whether horse-drawn carriages should disappear from New York streets.

On Thursday, Manhattan Council Member Christopher Marte plans to reintroduce "Ryder's Law," a stalled bill named for a horse that collapsed in 2022, to phase out the industry. Marte and Voters For Animal Rights argue horses shouldn't be working amid city traffic and noise. The Central Park Conservancy has backed Ryder's Law, citing seven horse-related incidents in just over a year, per CBS News. Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who said he was disturbed by Tuesday's incident, also supports removing carriage horses from the park, though he's aiming for a solution that soothes critics and the union. TWU Local 100, which represents about 170 active drivers and stablehands in an industry with 183 licensed horses, argues the animals are properly cared for and the rides—roughly $72 for the first 20 minutes—remain a tourism staple.