A tragic incident happened the early hours of June 7 on the New Jersey Turnpike when ten expensive racehorses die when their trailer caught on fire.
They were reportedly traveling in a Salleem Horse Van from Florida to Christophe Clement’s New York stable when the flames started. Christophe Clement Racing took to Twitter to post a public update on the situation.
“This morning we learned from Sallee that a van carrying horses to our barn in NY caught on fire. We understand both drivers were admitted to (the) hospital, and that all horses have passed,” the tweet read. “We are all devastated by the news and heartbroken—we are working to understand what happened.”
https://twitter.com/clementstable/status/1269671981647114243?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1269671981647114243&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fsports.yahoo.com%2Ffiery-crash-kills-10-racehorses-on-new-jersey-turnpike-032333473.html
Unfortunately, two WPT fillies, Hot Mist and Under the Oaks were among the horses in the tragic van accident. Hot Mist was a 3-year-old grade 3-winning Bustin Stones mare and the daughter of Tonalist. She won her career debut May 16th at Tampa Bay Downs.
Under the Oaks was also a 3-year-old filly who was the daughter of American Pharoah and the stakes-winning Lookin At Lucky mare Maybellene. Under the Oaks debuted at Gulfstream Park on May 30th and rallied from 10th to finish in sixth place on a one-mile sprint.
Sad to share that two WPT fillies were among the @clementstable horses in the tragic van accident this morning. Rest easy Hot Mist & Under the Oaks. Condolences to her Partners, the Clement team,& all those who loved the 🐴 who perished. Very glad the drivers are ok. 💔 pic.twitter.com/btJGyppf9l
— West Point Tbred (@westpointtbred) June 7, 2020
Sallee Horse Vans owner Nicole Pieratt said the truck and the trailer caught on fire at 3:15am and an investigation has been launched to find out what exactly happened. Several reports say the truck and trailer hit a concrete divider which caused the truck to catch on fire. Both of the drivers were transported from scene to the hospital for smoke inhalation and have since been released.
Sallee Horse Vans said, “While our drivers attempted to rescue the horses, it was not possible. Both drivers have been taken to the hospital, one driver has been released, and the other is being treated for smoke inhalation.” according to Paulick Report.