A pair of runaway horses crashed into the rear of a wagon carrying Mayor Bob Walkup and his wife, Beth, during Thursday's Tucson Rodeo Parade, sending both to the hospital with minor injuries.
The horses, pulling another wagon, had galloped past six other vehicles in the parade after they became spooked.
The crash occurred at about 10 a.m. in the 4600 block of South Sixth Avenue, a little more than two blocks after the horses had started speeding up near Sixth and Irvington Road.
The mayor suffered bruising and swelling to his right forearm, but X-rays taken at University Medical Center showed no fractures, said Dr. Harvey Meislin, the hospital's director of emergency services. The injury was treated with ice.
Beth Walkup had a bruised scalp, but X-rays and a CT scan of her head and neck showed no other injury, Meislin said. She was complaining of neck pains and a headache after the accident.
People are also reading…
"From what I understand of the accident, I think they were very lucky," Meislin said.
The Walkups left the hospital at about 2:30 p.m. "We're fine," the mayor told reporters outside UMC.
Driver credited in saving lives
The spooked horses were pulling a wagon carrying reporters and anchor crews from KOLD-TV and their families.
"We could hear the people in the audience screaming," said Barbara Grijalva, a KOLD anchorwoman and one of 10 people, including four kids, riding in the runaway wagon. "The wagon was swerving. I was scared for us, and so scared for the crowd. In some places they were 4- and 5- feet deep. I was really scared that we were going to hit someone."
Grijalva credited the driver, whose name couldn't be learned Thursday, with avoiding a more serious accident by skillfully steering the wagon and "hammering" the brakes to keep the horses from speeding more furiously. One of the wagon wheels broke and it was dragging instead of rolling, she said.
"I think he did a heck of a job," Grijalva said. "I think he saved some lives."
In a second incident, a wagon carrying Attorney General Terry Goddard ran into a fence on the rodeo grounds near the end of the parade route after a horse pulling it also broke into high speeds. Goddard and his son, Kevin, were not hurt.
Large crowd at parade
The 81st annual La Fiesta de los Vaqueros Parade was otherwise a peaceful event, said Bob Stewart, director of the Rodeo Parade Committee. It attracted tens of thousands of spectators.
But some who watched the runaway wagon crash into the horse-drawn Walkup vehicle said they too were scared.
South Side resident Rosalinda Rico, who stood in the 4700 block of South Sixth, said she watched the white horses in the KOLD wagon go on top of the horses pulling the Walkups' vehicle.
Other witnesses said the horses appeared out of control. "It was awful," said Rico's daughter, also named Rosalinda.
Authorities, well aware of the possibility of horses getting spooked by large crowds, try to desensitize them starting on the Monday before the parade. The animals are exposed to band music, loud sirens, the sounds of firetrucks, the rumbling of diesel engines and other noises, said Capt. Paul McDonough, a Tucson Fire Department spokesman.
But there is an inherent risk with horse-drawn wagons, and the KOLD wagon driver did what he was supposed to do by running into the back of a buggy, McDonough said.
"This could have been worse, if the team were to go into the crowd," he said. "You don't want to run it into a crowd of people. You want to continue running down the street, you want to safely bring them to a stop.''
Walkups grateful for care
Dr. Amy Baldwin, the emergency room doctor who treated the Walkups, said Beth Walkup probably suffered mild whiplash. But she should have no long-term effects, Meislin said.
The Walkups emerged from UMC holding hands. They said they were grateful for the care they received, and for phone calls from Tucsonans wishing them well.
Beth Walkup said she was still experiencing pain where she was struck on her head.
"We're looking forward to a little bit of downtime," she said. "But then we always look forward to that."
Trophy winners: See list of winning parade floats, riders, bands.
Page B2
Cowgirl up: Montana native Terri Kay Kirkland rides her horse, Ali, to victory. Page C1
On StarNet: See more images from the Rodeo Parade at azstarnet.com /rodeo
Faculty concerned about changes to U of A admissions policy
