Horse falls on top of a rider and crushes him in Utah mountains, rescuers say
A horseback rider had to be rescued from the mountains of Utah after the horse he was riding fell on him, officials said.
The rider had fallen off the horse, and the horse then fell on top of him, a spokesperson for the Summit County Sheriff’s Office told McClatchy News in an email.
Another person he was riding with the morning of July 8 called for help from a satellite phone, officials said.
Several rescue agencies flew to the area about 1.5 miles north of Beaver Lake in a rescue helicopter and found the riding group, but couldn’t land there so rescuers reached them on foot, officials said.
Rescuers hoisted the injured rider into the rescue helicopter with a stretcher and flew him to a Salt Lake area hospital for treatment, where he is recovering from non-critical injuries, officials said.
The rider was working on a survey project when it happened, officials said.
He is a Utah State University employee who was doing surveys on horseback with the Division of Natural Resources, KSTU reported.
The horse reared up while they were on a decline, causing him to fall off and the horse then fell back on top of him, cracking several of his ribs, the outlet reported.
Beaver Lake is about a 95-mile drive west from Salt Lake City.
This story was originally published July 17, 2025 at 4:03 PM with the headline "Horse falls on top of a rider and crushes him in Utah mountains, rescuers say."
