June 18, 2026
Teen Tragically Dies, Thrown From Central Park Horse Drawn Carriage
Apple Podcasts 
Spotify 
Castro 
RSS Feed 18-year-old Romanch Mahajan was celebrating his high school graduation with his parents and younger brother with a once in a lifetime trip to NYC. The family decided to take a relaxing ride through Central Park in one of its iconic horse drawn carriages. When the driver stepped away to snap a family photo of the group, the horse bolted and accelerated, throwing Romanch to his death. Now there are renewed and urgent calls to end the decades long tradition in New York, and demands for a full investigation into the tragedy.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
00:00:02
Speaker 1: Hey, the folks. It is Thursday, June eighteenth, and a tragedy in Central Park, picturesque Central Park, and eighteen year old has died after being thrown from a horse drawn carriage, Yes, one of those classic historic horse drawn carriages in Central Park. And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ. Ropes. It's what it's almost is right behind the Statue of Liberty. For a lot of folks. You have to do this when you come to New York.
00:00:33
Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's a must do.
00:00:35
Speaker 3: When I first moved to New York, I did it just to say I did. It was beautiful, it was peaceful, and I didn't realize there are so many of these carriages lining up and down Central Park. So even if you aren't going there with the intention of getting on one of those horse drawn carriages.
00:00:52
Speaker 1: They suck you in.
00:00:53
Speaker 3: They do because you see it and it looks like such a fun, beautiful way to see Central Park and just a cool iconic thing to say you did.
00:01:03
Speaker 1: That's the word. It is iconic. It's just an iconic part of the city. It's been around one hundred and fifty plus years whatever's been going on. But yes, Robes, there's usually controversy over the years one way or another, whether it has to do with animal abuse or animal deaths or accidents robes. We have an eighteen year old kid now that has died after an accident in which he was writing one of these with his family. And the details we are getting, yes, this happened in the afternoon. It's horrific anyway that somebody died. This scene now we're getting details about sounds awful.
00:01:35
Speaker 2: It's heartbreaking.
00:01:36
Speaker 3: I just think about this family of four traveled to New York for the very first time summer vacation, and they were hitting all the stops. They had done the nine to eleven Memorial, they had taken in, what.
00:01:51
Speaker 2: Else had they done? Statue of Liberty? Yet they were making the round. They did the Brooklyn Bridge.
00:01:55
Speaker 3: So yes, it was a beautiful day yesterday in Central Park and so old fashioned horse drawn carriage was next. And they actually had said that they were looking forward to a relaxing day in the park after running around the city like they had been doing. So look, they're all on this beautiful carriage. And I don't know if they asked or if the driver offered, but they stopped at this area in cuch a park called Cherry Hill near a fountain, said, we'll get a picture of your family on the carriage. So the driver leaves the horse unattended, and they believe he was about an arm's length away or more than an arm's length away, And while he's taking this picture, the horse bolts and goes up onto a sidewalk into the grass, and it was described as accelerating crazily.
00:02:42
Speaker 2: That's how it was described.
00:02:43
Speaker 1: I mean, Robes, you essentially the idea, when you think about it, Robes, you have a you have a wild animal loose in Central Park, a wild, huge, powerful animal with nobody at the reins. That actually does sound like a bad idea.
00:03:01
Speaker 2: Yeah, babe.
00:03:01
Speaker 3: And this horse had only been working Central Park for six weeks. So this even though he was a seven year old horse. I believe we've got his name Samson. So it was a seven year old horse and he had been working in Central Park for six weeks and.
00:03:15
Speaker 2: He just probably got spooped.
00:03:18
Speaker 3: Anyone who's been around horses, I'm not extremely well versed in them, but I've been around them enough. I've ridden them enough to know that they can get easily spooked.
00:03:28
Speaker 1: And Robes, they scare me because they're such huge, powerful animals. Horse and an elephant, right, an elephant looks cool and calm, that thing gets worked out robe. They scare the hell out of me to be close to them. And so we're talking about and yes, it does look beautiful. It's picturesque, it's icon all these things, and you see them roads. We go run in the park all the time. We don't do carriage rides, but anytime they talk about banning carriages from the Central Park, I get sad. I'm like, oh, I hope they don't because it's just such a part of who we are.
00:04:01
Speaker 3: It is even the smell of the horses. I know this sounds weird, but it takes you to Central Park, you know exactly where you are. There's something about just the experience of seeing them, smelling them, being around them. It just makes part of what it really does create a magic, like there's a magical part of the park when you see that. I hate that's just the best way to describe it. But yes, the actual scene of how this happened, this made it even I mean, obviously there's nothing more tragic than losing your child right in front of you. On family vacation, but he died a hero. His mom is the one who fell out. She literally got thrown out of the carriage. He jumps down to try and save her, to help her, to grab her, and in the process, because this thing is going crazy, it's hitting the grass, it's going wild. While he's trying to get down to get his mom, he falls in the worst way and just hits his head on the ground and it was described that one his head hit the ground, he was motionless.
00:05:04
Speaker 1: This is such a violent and again, these carriages, I mean robes, there's nothing to particip you know, if this thing gets going, your best option, you would think, is to jump out. There's no protection by staying inside. What was the scene they described and this kid so everybody else didn't I seek correctly. The rest of the family escaped fairly unscathed.
00:05:26
Speaker 3: There were basically no other injuries, like mild injuries, to the point where they said the family didn't want to go to the hospital, didn't need to go to the hospital. Literally, they weren't injured. So to think that he was so worried about his mom and that's how he got pushed out, basically trying to get to her and she was actually okay, But that's just it's a beautiful moment to think about what.
00:05:53
Speaker 2: He was trying to do for his mom.
00:05:54
Speaker 3: And then folks who were there said that the father was screaming, help me, help me, help me. I mean, they were just dreaming for help. I just cannot imagine the chaos in those few seconds, because when you hear about an eighteen year old dying from a horse drawn carriage, I mean I was just trying to imagine how that could have happened like that just seems like such a bizarre So many things had to go wrong, including the way he fell for him to actually die.
00:06:21
Speaker 2: It's not a long drop. He's an eighteen year old, strong, youthful kid.
00:06:26
Speaker 1: His mom survived to drop without much of an injury. Just it's a freak. It's a fluke thing robes but still didn't have to happen and shouldn't have happened with whatever went on with his horse. Who knows what happened? And you said six weeks or they keep pointing that out, I mean, wild does that sound? I know it's a horse ropes. We weren't that. There's a reason even waiters go through a training period. Yeah, they're shadowing six weeks. The horse is not that experience.
00:06:58
Speaker 3: No, and not in the park and not knowing you know, when you get used to it. These horses, some of them have been doing this for decades. They know, they know the area, they know the wildlife, they know that.
00:07:09
Speaker 2: It's a lot of people.
00:07:11
Speaker 3: So look, if you don't have a horse, it's familiar with being around that kind of a scene in Central Park is bustling.
00:07:18
Speaker 1: It scares me.
00:07:19
Speaker 2: Yeah, right, I get nervous.
00:07:21
Speaker 3: This is so true. We run there every now and again. But you're looking, You're having to look out for horse drawn carriages, You're having to look out for people speeding on bikes, rollerbladers, you got people walking with strollers and dogs and it's just chaos. Ands now god there now you got the scooters there now too, So you've just got so many different activities all going on sharing the same roadway.
00:07:50
Speaker 1: Overload, right, it really is. And like you said, the smells, you're familiar with smells, and there are certain sounds are used to hearing in the park as well.
00:07:59
Speaker 3: It is at but an animal who has only been doing it for six weeks is still getting used to all that chaos.
00:08:05
Speaker 1: And wait a minute, the guy who was handling the reins or a moment ago, he just let them go and stepped off the carriage.
00:08:12
Speaker 2: To take a picture.
00:08:13
Speaker 1: Let me get out of here.
00:08:14
Speaker 3: Can you imagine, like I was just thinking, if you're the family, you would never want to take another picture again every time someone took a picture of you, every time someone offered a group photo, you would be just gut punched.
00:08:27
Speaker 2: I was like to think, if we just hadn't gotten the photo.
00:08:30
Speaker 3: And again we don't know if they asked for one or if he offered one, but we know it's not allowed.
00:08:35
Speaker 1: I did not know this, and I don't know how it goes rose. But the folks who do these tours, you have packages. It's fairly expensive. Two hundred three hundred bucks. Yeah, four hour whatever, it take you all around. But they have certain packages robes that you get two photo stops, three photo stops. Now those don't mean the carriage driver supposed to be taking the picture. In fact he wasn't. It makes sense, robes why he left. You know what, it's not exactly the same, But can you imagine a pilot, a cab driver, a whatever, driving or flying the plane. You know what, I'm a step away from the wheel here so I can take this picture for you know, but come right back to He essentially left them unprotected.
00:09:23
Speaker 2: Rhodes, oh my goodness.
00:09:25
Speaker 1: Of course was in control.
00:09:28
Speaker 2: Yes, and out of control all at the same time.
00:09:31
Speaker 3: The Transport Workers Union released a statement and said what happened.
00:09:35
Speaker 2: They said, this is unacceptable.
00:09:37
Speaker 3: A driver is not supposed to leave the carriage to take photos. Ever, we support a full investigation. Look, maybe he was trying to make them happy. Maybe they asked for it. He knew he shouldn't, but he was hoping for a good tip. You know, there are all sorts of things that were likely at play.
00:09:53
Speaker 1: How many hundreds of time has he stepped out of that thing and taken a picture. This was not the first time.
00:09:57
Speaker 2: Of course it wasn't.
00:09:58
Speaker 3: And you just think, I think about all all the passers by people are so happy that we've taken photos for people everywhere throughout.
00:10:05
Speaker 2: New York City.
00:10:06
Speaker 3: There's always going to be a friendly New Yorker who's going to offer to take the picture for you. I just I wish that he could have just asked someone, hey, could you take a picture? Just I'm sure, and look, by the way, The driver's name has not been released.
00:10:18
Speaker 2: And this is all.
00:10:19
Speaker 3: This is all just happened less than twenty four hours ago as of this recording. But he was suspended indefinitely by the carriage's owner.
00:10:27
Speaker 2: As you might imagine.
00:10:30
Speaker 1: Is there a homicide investigator? Is there? I should say? Excuse me, I say they are.
00:10:35
Speaker 2: Like a manslaughter, possibly voluntary?
00:10:38
Speaker 1: Yes, can you say this was reckless behavior? You can get to a death.
00:10:43
Speaker 3: And I think that is why the union is asking for a full investigation, because I do believe that it would absolutely be within the realm of possibility that there are criminal charges filed against this driver.
00:10:54
Speaker 1: A mist like that.
00:10:55
Speaker 2: Oh my god, I know.
00:10:58
Speaker 3: And by the way, I know people always and we'll get into this in just a moment.
00:11:01
Speaker 2: That people obviously care deeply for these horses.
00:11:04
Speaker 3: And I just wanted to let you know that Samson, the horse was uninjured in this entire process, and he is now going to be retired. Obviously you cannot have that particular horse leading a carriage in Central Park or anywhere ever.
00:11:18
Speaker 1: Again, I don't know how that process works. How did he get okay? What's the training, what's the protocol to even pass the test? To be approved to be one of those, right, what is that soon? It has to be. I hope they're the best of the best horses when it comes to temperament at least.
00:11:32
Speaker 3: Of course you would hope that. And look, a lot of questions are being asked. And when we come back, we're going to tell you about the renewed calls to ban carriages from Central Park and this time it looks like it is coming to a vote. Welcome back everyone to this episode of Amy and TJ. We are talking about this horrible tourist tragedy in New York City.
00:12:01
Speaker 2: It happened on Wednesday.
00:12:02
Speaker 3: An eighteen year old young man literally fell to his death from a horse drawn carriage in front of his family as he was trying to help his mom because the horse took off, went up to the sidewalk into the grassy area all because, yeah, the guy who was supposed to be holding the reins was holding a camera taking a picture away from the horse. And so yes, this has led to renewed calls for horse drawn carriages in the city to be banned. We've been hearing this drum beat for years now.
00:12:36
Speaker 1: Animal rights folks usually though, right, isn't that usually the argument, we don't I can't remember in robes. I don't know if you've seen another. But there have been incidents or accidents. I can't remember another death over the years. I assume there has at least right now, everybody would be digging. Nobody else's reporting about another one just yet I can't remember.
00:12:55
Speaker 3: This seems like one of like the worst case scenario. In fact, I can tell you that the Central Park Conservancy said that there have been eight horse related incidents, that's what they're calling them, in or near the park since just May of last year. So they do have some of them detailed, but nothing as tragic as this.
00:13:15
Speaker 1: Obviously, the horse went the wrong way, bumped into some cars, went the wrong way in traffic, and things like that. I think a horse ate some This one one died ate something poisonous from that.
00:13:26
Speaker 2: Was last week. So last week a horse named Denise.
00:13:30
Speaker 3: Denise died after eating a poisonous plant, a Japanese yew that was growing in Central Park.
00:13:35
Speaker 2: And so yeah, the horse collapsed and died.
00:13:37
Speaker 3: That created a lot of uproar from folks animal rights activists who believe this just is not a it's just it's not a place for horses, and they're arguing for the horses, not necessarily for the safety of people. It's for the safety of the horses. So this just adds, obviously a whole other layer to this. And look, the Central Park Conservancy said, a young man came to enjoy our park and lost his life. That is not an acceptable cost of an antiquated industry operating in the middle of one of the most heavily used public spaces in America.
00:14:15
Speaker 1: Yes, I agree, it's antiquated, and it's not necessary. The way it was when it started back in the eighteen sixties eighteen fifties, New York was a different place. I understand. We have automobiles now, yes, I understand, but this is what we also don't need helicopter tours.
00:14:29
Speaker 3: Right, I know.
00:14:31
Speaker 2: I got chills from that too. Yes, don't.
00:14:33
Speaker 1: And we also don't need roller coasters. We don't need a lot of stuff robes that we do because we enjoy it, we appreciate it. Now, I have no argument, I have no I am not an expert when it comes to animal cruelty, animal rights, what the analytic experiencing. No, no, So I'm not getting involved in that. But I can't just dismiss out of hand. Hey, this is antiquated and it's not necessary, therefore we should get rid of it. It's a spec it means something to New York, and it's special and I would hate to see it go away. But I can understand the animal argument.
00:15:07
Speaker 3: Yes, and now with an eighteen year old dead, it creates a much bigger argument, and we should point out Mayor mom Donnie has publicly stated that he supports removing the horse drawn carriages from the park, and he's been called on by several organizations to now sign an executive order to ban them immediately. That probably won't happen, but what is going to happen. The City Council is going to take up the bill next month that would ban carriages at the end of next year, and mom Donnie says that he will support that. So he said he looks forward to working with city council members.
00:15:48
Speaker 1: Okay, I don't know. It's just it's New York. I know it is New York and in the top five. If you just start asking people about New York, what do you know about New York? They'll start risk listening things. It's just I can't wasn't name it there in Center Park. You got the boats there, the canoes, and it's just Central Park. I know it is Central Park.
00:16:09
Speaker 3: Maybe there will be tighter regulations, maybe to your point, they'll train animals better or longer, or have certain rules or certain safeguards in place that aren't there now. But did you know there are more than one hundred carriage horses in Manhattan. I didn't realize the number was that big.
00:16:29
Speaker 1: I'm not sure what I thought about that when I heard that number, because we only see so many at a time, I guess. But and they're all in the southern part of the park for the most part, parked on Center Park West and then the south. But they do, they will take you up around the northern part. But to see them lying there across from the Essex House on Center Park South, I need to see them there, walk past them. Yes, to catch one of them taking a poop in the middle of the street every once, This that disgusting experience is a part of the Central Park character. Yeah, I cannot so please. For analy rights folks, this is not We're not making that argument. It's just a matter of Yeah, even with this accident, it's unfortunate as it is robes go with the helicopters. We haven't stopped those tours and a family that's true, was taken out.
00:17:16
Speaker 2: That's true. And you know it's weird.
00:17:18
Speaker 3: That was a birthday celebration and we see those helicopters go up and the last picture they all took before they went up in that helicopter, and there was also that last picture of Romance right before he died. And look just a bookend here for just remembering him. This eighteen year old. His father described this trip as a once in a lifetime trip to celebrate his high school graduation. That is why the family went to New York City to celebrate Romance's high school graduation. He had just learned, they say, the day they arrived in New York, he had just learned that he had been accepted to one of the best universities in India, and he was very excited about his future. Ah, it chokes you up to think about it, just how unbelievably unnecessary and sad this death is. And you know there may be some changes that come out of it because of it.
00:18:09
Speaker 1: Oh, it's worth the conversation. Yeah, it's always worth the conversation. But yeah, you add roaches to that. It was the kid in Tokyo recently, wasn't that family celebrating something?
00:18:19
Speaker 3: Was his younger brother's high school graduation and they were all in Tokyo. He wanders off or deliberately goes into the woods and dies in Kyoto.
00:18:28
Speaker 1: Helicopter accident with the family birthday celebration.
00:18:30
Speaker 2: Yep, eleven year old birthday celebrations once again.
00:18:33
Speaker 1: So yes, it's their tragedies. There's something about that adds to the tragedy, and you hear about those things. So this is an awful one and yes, the debate will rage on it in New York again.
00:18:44
Speaker 3: These stories always make me just want to hug the people I love and tell them I love them, because you just never know. These freak accidents do happen, and this was a tragic one. Indeed, we always appreciate you listening to us.
00:18:57
Speaker 2: Everyone. I'm Amy Roboch alongside TJ. Hull Holmes. We will talk to you very soon.
Speaker 1: Hey, the folks. It is Thursday, June eighteenth, and a tragedy in Central Park, picturesque Central Park, and eighteen year old has died after being thrown from a horse drawn carriage, Yes, one of those classic historic horse drawn carriages in Central Park. And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ. Ropes. It's what it's almost is right behind the Statue of Liberty. For a lot of folks. You have to do this when you come to New York.
00:00:33
Speaker 2: Absolutely, it's a must do.
00:00:35
Speaker 3: When I first moved to New York, I did it just to say I did. It was beautiful, it was peaceful, and I didn't realize there are so many of these carriages lining up and down Central Park. So even if you aren't going there with the intention of getting on one of those horse drawn carriages.
00:00:52
Speaker 1: They suck you in.
00:00:53
Speaker 3: They do because you see it and it looks like such a fun, beautiful way to see Central Park and just a cool iconic thing to say you did.
00:01:03
Speaker 1: That's the word. It is iconic. It's just an iconic part of the city. It's been around one hundred and fifty plus years whatever's been going on. But yes, Robes, there's usually controversy over the years one way or another, whether it has to do with animal abuse or animal deaths or accidents robes. We have an eighteen year old kid now that has died after an accident in which he was writing one of these with his family. And the details we are getting, yes, this happened in the afternoon. It's horrific anyway that somebody died. This scene now we're getting details about sounds awful.
00:01:35
Speaker 2: It's heartbreaking.
00:01:36
Speaker 3: I just think about this family of four traveled to New York for the very first time summer vacation, and they were hitting all the stops. They had done the nine to eleven Memorial, they had taken in, what.
00:01:51
Speaker 2: Else had they done? Statue of Liberty? Yet they were making the round. They did the Brooklyn Bridge.
00:01:55
Speaker 3: So yes, it was a beautiful day yesterday in Central Park and so old fashioned horse drawn carriage was next. And they actually had said that they were looking forward to a relaxing day in the park after running around the city like they had been doing. So look, they're all on this beautiful carriage. And I don't know if they asked or if the driver offered, but they stopped at this area in cuch a park called Cherry Hill near a fountain, said, we'll get a picture of your family on the carriage. So the driver leaves the horse unattended, and they believe he was about an arm's length away or more than an arm's length away, And while he's taking this picture, the horse bolts and goes up onto a sidewalk into the grass, and it was described as accelerating crazily.
00:02:42
Speaker 2: That's how it was described.
00:02:43
Speaker 1: I mean, Robes, you essentially the idea, when you think about it, Robes, you have a you have a wild animal loose in Central Park, a wild, huge, powerful animal with nobody at the reins. That actually does sound like a bad idea.
00:03:01
Speaker 2: Yeah, babe.
00:03:01
Speaker 3: And this horse had only been working Central Park for six weeks. So this even though he was a seven year old horse. I believe we've got his name Samson. So it was a seven year old horse and he had been working in Central Park for six weeks and.
00:03:15
Speaker 2: He just probably got spooped.
00:03:18
Speaker 3: Anyone who's been around horses, I'm not extremely well versed in them, but I've been around them enough. I've ridden them enough to know that they can get easily spooked.
00:03:28
Speaker 1: And Robes, they scare me because they're such huge, powerful animals. Horse and an elephant, right, an elephant looks cool and calm, that thing gets worked out robe. They scare the hell out of me to be close to them. And so we're talking about and yes, it does look beautiful. It's picturesque, it's icon all these things, and you see them roads. We go run in the park all the time. We don't do carriage rides, but anytime they talk about banning carriages from the Central Park, I get sad. I'm like, oh, I hope they don't because it's just such a part of who we are.
00:04:01
Speaker 3: It is even the smell of the horses. I know this sounds weird, but it takes you to Central Park, you know exactly where you are. There's something about just the experience of seeing them, smelling them, being around them. It just makes part of what it really does create a magic, like there's a magical part of the park when you see that. I hate that's just the best way to describe it. But yes, the actual scene of how this happened, this made it even I mean, obviously there's nothing more tragic than losing your child right in front of you. On family vacation, but he died a hero. His mom is the one who fell out. She literally got thrown out of the carriage. He jumps down to try and save her, to help her, to grab her, and in the process, because this thing is going crazy, it's hitting the grass, it's going wild. While he's trying to get down to get his mom, he falls in the worst way and just hits his head on the ground and it was described that one his head hit the ground, he was motionless.
00:05:04
Speaker 1: This is such a violent and again, these carriages, I mean robes, there's nothing to particip you know, if this thing gets going, your best option, you would think, is to jump out. There's no protection by staying inside. What was the scene they described and this kid so everybody else didn't I seek correctly. The rest of the family escaped fairly unscathed.
00:05:26
Speaker 3: There were basically no other injuries, like mild injuries, to the point where they said the family didn't want to go to the hospital, didn't need to go to the hospital. Literally, they weren't injured. So to think that he was so worried about his mom and that's how he got pushed out, basically trying to get to her and she was actually okay, But that's just it's a beautiful moment to think about what.
00:05:53
Speaker 2: He was trying to do for his mom.
00:05:54
Speaker 3: And then folks who were there said that the father was screaming, help me, help me, help me. I mean, they were just dreaming for help. I just cannot imagine the chaos in those few seconds, because when you hear about an eighteen year old dying from a horse drawn carriage, I mean I was just trying to imagine how that could have happened like that just seems like such a bizarre So many things had to go wrong, including the way he fell for him to actually die.
00:06:21
Speaker 2: It's not a long drop. He's an eighteen year old, strong, youthful kid.
00:06:26
Speaker 1: His mom survived to drop without much of an injury. Just it's a freak. It's a fluke thing robes but still didn't have to happen and shouldn't have happened with whatever went on with his horse. Who knows what happened? And you said six weeks or they keep pointing that out, I mean, wild does that sound? I know it's a horse ropes. We weren't that. There's a reason even waiters go through a training period. Yeah, they're shadowing six weeks. The horse is not that experience.
00:06:58
Speaker 3: No, and not in the park and not knowing you know, when you get used to it. These horses, some of them have been doing this for decades. They know, they know the area, they know the wildlife, they know that.
00:07:09
Speaker 2: It's a lot of people.
00:07:11
Speaker 3: So look, if you don't have a horse, it's familiar with being around that kind of a scene in Central Park is bustling.
00:07:18
Speaker 1: It scares me.
00:07:19
Speaker 2: Yeah, right, I get nervous.
00:07:21
Speaker 3: This is so true. We run there every now and again. But you're looking, You're having to look out for horse drawn carriages, You're having to look out for people speeding on bikes, rollerbladers, you got people walking with strollers and dogs and it's just chaos. Ands now god there now you got the scooters there now too, So you've just got so many different activities all going on sharing the same roadway.
00:07:50
Speaker 1: Overload, right, it really is. And like you said, the smells, you're familiar with smells, and there are certain sounds are used to hearing in the park as well.
00:07:59
Speaker 3: It is at but an animal who has only been doing it for six weeks is still getting used to all that chaos.
00:08:05
Speaker 1: And wait a minute, the guy who was handling the reins or a moment ago, he just let them go and stepped off the carriage.
00:08:12
Speaker 2: To take a picture.
00:08:13
Speaker 1: Let me get out of here.
00:08:14
Speaker 3: Can you imagine, like I was just thinking, if you're the family, you would never want to take another picture again every time someone took a picture of you, every time someone offered a group photo, you would be just gut punched.
00:08:27
Speaker 2: I was like to think, if we just hadn't gotten the photo.
00:08:30
Speaker 3: And again we don't know if they asked for one or if he offered one, but we know it's not allowed.
00:08:35
Speaker 1: I did not know this, and I don't know how it goes rose. But the folks who do these tours, you have packages. It's fairly expensive. Two hundred three hundred bucks. Yeah, four hour whatever, it take you all around. But they have certain packages robes that you get two photo stops, three photo stops. Now those don't mean the carriage driver supposed to be taking the picture. In fact he wasn't. It makes sense, robes why he left. You know what, it's not exactly the same, But can you imagine a pilot, a cab driver, a whatever, driving or flying the plane. You know what, I'm a step away from the wheel here so I can take this picture for you know, but come right back to He essentially left them unprotected.
00:09:23
Speaker 2: Rhodes, oh my goodness.
00:09:25
Speaker 1: Of course was in control.
00:09:28
Speaker 2: Yes, and out of control all at the same time.
00:09:31
Speaker 3: The Transport Workers Union released a statement and said what happened.
00:09:35
Speaker 2: They said, this is unacceptable.
00:09:37
Speaker 3: A driver is not supposed to leave the carriage to take photos. Ever, we support a full investigation. Look, maybe he was trying to make them happy. Maybe they asked for it. He knew he shouldn't, but he was hoping for a good tip. You know, there are all sorts of things that were likely at play.
00:09:53
Speaker 1: How many hundreds of time has he stepped out of that thing and taken a picture. This was not the first time.
00:09:57
Speaker 2: Of course it wasn't.
00:09:58
Speaker 3: And you just think, I think about all all the passers by people are so happy that we've taken photos for people everywhere throughout.
00:10:05
Speaker 2: New York City.
00:10:06
Speaker 3: There's always going to be a friendly New Yorker who's going to offer to take the picture for you. I just I wish that he could have just asked someone, hey, could you take a picture? Just I'm sure, and look, by the way, The driver's name has not been released.
00:10:18
Speaker 2: And this is all.
00:10:19
Speaker 3: This is all just happened less than twenty four hours ago as of this recording. But he was suspended indefinitely by the carriage's owner.
00:10:27
Speaker 2: As you might imagine.
00:10:30
Speaker 1: Is there a homicide investigator? Is there? I should say? Excuse me, I say they are.
00:10:35
Speaker 2: Like a manslaughter, possibly voluntary?
00:10:38
Speaker 1: Yes, can you say this was reckless behavior? You can get to a death.
00:10:43
Speaker 3: And I think that is why the union is asking for a full investigation, because I do believe that it would absolutely be within the realm of possibility that there are criminal charges filed against this driver.
00:10:54
Speaker 1: A mist like that.
00:10:55
Speaker 2: Oh my god, I know.
00:10:58
Speaker 3: And by the way, I know people always and we'll get into this in just a moment.
00:11:01
Speaker 2: That people obviously care deeply for these horses.
00:11:04
Speaker 3: And I just wanted to let you know that Samson, the horse was uninjured in this entire process, and he is now going to be retired. Obviously you cannot have that particular horse leading a carriage in Central Park or anywhere ever.
00:11:18
Speaker 1: Again, I don't know how that process works. How did he get okay? What's the training, what's the protocol to even pass the test? To be approved to be one of those, right, what is that soon? It has to be. I hope they're the best of the best horses when it comes to temperament at least.
00:11:32
Speaker 3: Of course you would hope that. And look, a lot of questions are being asked. And when we come back, we're going to tell you about the renewed calls to ban carriages from Central Park and this time it looks like it is coming to a vote. Welcome back everyone to this episode of Amy and TJ. We are talking about this horrible tourist tragedy in New York City.
00:12:01
Speaker 2: It happened on Wednesday.
00:12:02
Speaker 3: An eighteen year old young man literally fell to his death from a horse drawn carriage in front of his family as he was trying to help his mom because the horse took off, went up to the sidewalk into the grassy area all because, yeah, the guy who was supposed to be holding the reins was holding a camera taking a picture away from the horse. And so yes, this has led to renewed calls for horse drawn carriages in the city to be banned. We've been hearing this drum beat for years now.
00:12:36
Speaker 1: Animal rights folks usually though, right, isn't that usually the argument, we don't I can't remember in robes. I don't know if you've seen another. But there have been incidents or accidents. I can't remember another death over the years. I assume there has at least right now, everybody would be digging. Nobody else's reporting about another one just yet I can't remember.
00:12:55
Speaker 3: This seems like one of like the worst case scenario. In fact, I can tell you that the Central Park Conservancy said that there have been eight horse related incidents, that's what they're calling them, in or near the park since just May of last year. So they do have some of them detailed, but nothing as tragic as this.
00:13:15
Speaker 1: Obviously, the horse went the wrong way, bumped into some cars, went the wrong way in traffic, and things like that. I think a horse ate some This one one died ate something poisonous from that.
00:13:26
Speaker 2: Was last week. So last week a horse named Denise.
00:13:30
Speaker 3: Denise died after eating a poisonous plant, a Japanese yew that was growing in Central Park.
00:13:35
Speaker 2: And so yeah, the horse collapsed and died.
00:13:37
Speaker 3: That created a lot of uproar from folks animal rights activists who believe this just is not a it's just it's not a place for horses, and they're arguing for the horses, not necessarily for the safety of people. It's for the safety of the horses. So this just adds, obviously a whole other layer to this. And look, the Central Park Conservancy said, a young man came to enjoy our park and lost his life. That is not an acceptable cost of an antiquated industry operating in the middle of one of the most heavily used public spaces in America.
00:14:15
Speaker 1: Yes, I agree, it's antiquated, and it's not necessary. The way it was when it started back in the eighteen sixties eighteen fifties, New York was a different place. I understand. We have automobiles now, yes, I understand, but this is what we also don't need helicopter tours.
00:14:29
Speaker 3: Right, I know.
00:14:31
Speaker 2: I got chills from that too. Yes, don't.
00:14:33
Speaker 1: And we also don't need roller coasters. We don't need a lot of stuff robes that we do because we enjoy it, we appreciate it. Now, I have no argument, I have no I am not an expert when it comes to animal cruelty, animal rights, what the analytic experiencing. No, no, So I'm not getting involved in that. But I can't just dismiss out of hand. Hey, this is antiquated and it's not necessary, therefore we should get rid of it. It's a spec it means something to New York, and it's special and I would hate to see it go away. But I can understand the animal argument.
00:15:07
Speaker 3: Yes, and now with an eighteen year old dead, it creates a much bigger argument, and we should point out Mayor mom Donnie has publicly stated that he supports removing the horse drawn carriages from the park, and he's been called on by several organizations to now sign an executive order to ban them immediately. That probably won't happen, but what is going to happen. The City Council is going to take up the bill next month that would ban carriages at the end of next year, and mom Donnie says that he will support that. So he said he looks forward to working with city council members.
00:15:48
Speaker 1: Okay, I don't know. It's just it's New York. I know it is New York and in the top five. If you just start asking people about New York, what do you know about New York? They'll start risk listening things. It's just I can't wasn't name it there in Center Park. You got the boats there, the canoes, and it's just Central Park. I know it is Central Park.
00:16:09
Speaker 3: Maybe there will be tighter regulations, maybe to your point, they'll train animals better or longer, or have certain rules or certain safeguards in place that aren't there now. But did you know there are more than one hundred carriage horses in Manhattan. I didn't realize the number was that big.
00:16:29
Speaker 1: I'm not sure what I thought about that when I heard that number, because we only see so many at a time, I guess. But and they're all in the southern part of the park for the most part, parked on Center Park West and then the south. But they do, they will take you up around the northern part. But to see them lying there across from the Essex House on Center Park South, I need to see them there, walk past them. Yes, to catch one of them taking a poop in the middle of the street every once, This that disgusting experience is a part of the Central Park character. Yeah, I cannot so please. For analy rights folks, this is not We're not making that argument. It's just a matter of Yeah, even with this accident, it's unfortunate as it is robes go with the helicopters. We haven't stopped those tours and a family that's true, was taken out.
00:17:16
Speaker 2: That's true. And you know it's weird.
00:17:18
Speaker 3: That was a birthday celebration and we see those helicopters go up and the last picture they all took before they went up in that helicopter, and there was also that last picture of Romance right before he died. And look just a bookend here for just remembering him. This eighteen year old. His father described this trip as a once in a lifetime trip to celebrate his high school graduation. That is why the family went to New York City to celebrate Romance's high school graduation. He had just learned, they say, the day they arrived in New York, he had just learned that he had been accepted to one of the best universities in India, and he was very excited about his future. Ah, it chokes you up to think about it, just how unbelievably unnecessary and sad this death is. And you know there may be some changes that come out of it because of it.
00:18:09
Speaker 1: Oh, it's worth the conversation. Yeah, it's always worth the conversation. But yeah, you add roaches to that. It was the kid in Tokyo recently, wasn't that family celebrating something?
00:18:19
Speaker 3: Was his younger brother's high school graduation and they were all in Tokyo. He wanders off or deliberately goes into the woods and dies in Kyoto.
00:18:28
Speaker 1: Helicopter accident with the family birthday celebration.
00:18:30
Speaker 2: Yep, eleven year old birthday celebrations once again.
00:18:33
Speaker 1: So yes, it's their tragedies. There's something about that adds to the tragedy, and you hear about those things. So this is an awful one and yes, the debate will rage on it in New York again.
00:18:44
Speaker 3: These stories always make me just want to hug the people I love and tell them I love them, because you just never know. These freak accidents do happen, and this was a tragic one. Indeed, we always appreciate you listening to us.
00:18:57
Speaker 2: Everyone. I'm Amy Roboch alongside TJ. Hull Holmes. We will talk to you very soon.