Indian teen killed in Central Park horse carriage crash
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- Romanch Mahajan, 18, an Indian tourist, died after being thrown from a horse-drawn carriage in Central Park around 3 pm Wednesday when the horse suddenly bolted; he suffered a severe head injury and was pronounced dead in hospital after the other three passengers declined treatment.
- Sampson, the 7-year-old draft horse, had been working in Central Park for only six weeks and bolted after the driver stepped away from the carriage to photograph the passengers, according to TWU Local 100, which indefinitely suspended the driver and retired Sampson from service.
- Dramatic bystander videos showed the runaway carriage speeding through the park as the operator sprinted after it; two passengers jumped from the moving vehicle before it struck the wheel of another carriage and overturned near Tavern on the Green.
- The Central Park Conservancy called itself "absolutely devastated" and renewed its push for New York City to ban horse-drawn carriages, citing the death alongside a separate carriage horse that collapsed and died in the park less than a week earlier.
- Ryder's Law, which would phase out horse-drawn carriages while providing alternative employment support for drivers, was reintroduced to the City Council on Thursday after failing to advance last year; the bill is named after a carriage horse that collapsed while working in 2022.
- TWU Local 100 Administrative Vice President Alexander Kemp said "a driver is not supposed to leave the carriage to take photos — ever" and flagged broader Central Park safety concerns, including e-bikes, delivery vehicles, and pedicabs.
Why it matters: A tourist death plus a second horse fatality in the park within a week hands fresh momentum to Ryder's Law, which stalled in the City Council last year even with support from former mayor Eric Adams; the carriage industry now faces renewed pressure to prove the trade can operate safely, and drivers face a legislative clock on their livelihoods.
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