MADRID (Reuters) – Police in Seville are investigating the death of a horse from apparent heatstroke as it pulled a carriage laden with tourists through the southern Spanish city during a record heatwave.
Bystanders tried to revive the animal with water after it collapsed next to a busy road, a video posted on Instagram on Wednesday by a member of bird rescue charity Rescate de Aves showed.
The horse died during the city’s April Fair celebrations, which last year attracted an estimated 500,000 revelers to the hottest region in Spain.
Temperatures in Seville were expected to hit 36 degrees centigrade (97 degrees Fahrenheit) on Thursday, and the city has brought in extra healthcare workers to deal with heat exhaustion during the festival.
Horse-drawn tourist carriages are a common sight in the city, where authorities have handed out more than 1,000 licences to operate them during this year’s fair.
Seville’s assocation of horse carriage operators did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the horse’s death.
Spain’s state weather agency AEMET said this was likely to be the hottest April on the Iberian Peninsula since records began, with temperatures in some areas expected to reach 40C. It expects this week’s hot weather to peak on Thursday and Friday.
(Reporting by Charlie Devereux; writing and editing by John Stonestreet)
