'A freak thing' - Upsetting scenes in Limerick as dead horse removed from street

THERE were upsetting scenes in Bruff as a dead horse had to be removed from the side of the street in the centre of the town.

The distressing incident occurred at the junction of Main Street and Crawford Street at around 5pm on Thursday.

Video footage of the dead animal being winched into a lorry has been widely shared on social media.

Iconic Media understands the young chestnut-coloured horse was being transported in a horse box through Bruff at the time.

It is not known how the horse got loose from the horse box.

It subsequently suffered a serious injury. Veterinary assistance was immediately requested but due to the nature of the injury, the vet had to put the horse to sleep. Blankets were put over the carcass to cover it.

An animal collection service was then contacted and was quickly on the scene to remove the horse, which is what is shown in the video.

Gardai were called and assisted in directing traffic as the lorry was partially blocking the road. However, it is understood that there is no garda investigation into the incident which is being treated as a freak accident.

One local told Limerick Live the incident was very distressing.

"It was around 5pm so the road was very busy. I'm not sure exactly what happened but it wasn't a nice thing for people and especially youngsters to see. There was nothing anybody could do - it was just a freak thing," they said.