This was published 8 months ago
Stable hand dies after being kicked by a horse in Cranbourne trackwork tragedy
Updated ,first published
A stable hand has died at Cranbourne Racecourse on Tuesday morning after being kicked in the head by a horse.
The 43-year-old woman was working inside a stable at the training centre on Cemetery Road when the tragedy happened just after 7.30am.
On-course paramedics responded to a call about 7.50am and performed CPR but were unable to save the woman.
The death is not being treated as suspicious.
Racing Victoria released a statement on Tuesday confirming the death at Cranbourne, which operates as Southside Racing, but they have not released the name of her employer.
“It is with great sadness that Racing Victoria confirms that a female stable employee has tragically passed away following an incident at the Cranbourne Training Centre this morning,” the RV statement read.
“Victoria Police and WorkSafe are on-site investigating the circumstances of the incident in which the stable employee is believed to have been kicked by a horse in the stables of her employer.
“Trackwork at the Cranbourne Training Centre was closed following the incident.
“RV and Southside Racing are offering assistance and support to her employer and the local racing community at this tragic time.”
Southside Racing expressed sympathy for the woman’s family, friends and work colleagues.
Police will prepare a report for the coroner.
Jockey Blake Shinn posted a message on X following the tragedy, saying he was “heartbroken”.
“My thoughts are with her loved ones and everyone who worked alongside her,” he wrote.
“This is a painful reminder of the dangers that come with working in such a demanding and unpredictable environment.”
It is the second death of a stable hand following an accident at a Victorian racecourse this year.
Fiona Ralph, 58, died in the Royal Melbourne Hospital in May after she fell and hit her head in the tie-up stalls at Bendigo Racecourse.
The freak accident happened at a race meeting on Tuesday May 16, when Ralph was working for trainer Toby Lake.
She was treated by on-course medics and flown to the Royal Melbourne Hospital for emergency surgery, but her condition deteriorated and she died the following Monday.
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