18-year-old tourist dies after horse-drawn carriage overturns in Central Park

An 18-year-old tourist from India died Wednesday after a horse-drawn carriage bolted through Central Park, struck another carriage and overturned.

Romanch Mahajan fell from the carriage near Cherry Hill at West 72nd Street and West Drive. He was taken to a hospital in critical condition and later died.

The Central Park Conservancy said the horse-drawn carriage carrying passengers broke free on West Drive, hit another carriage and flipped over near Tavern on the Green. Officials have not said what caused the horse to bolt.

A New York City Police Department spokesperson said the investigation remains ongoing.

The Central Park Conservancy expressed condolences to Mahajan's family. The group, which has long opposed horse-drawn carriages in the park, renewed its call for New York City to pass Ryder's Law and ban the carriages.

Alexander Kemp of TWU Local 100, the union representing carriage drivers, said preliminary information indicates the driver may have stepped away from the horse to take a photo. Kemp called the action unacceptable and said the union supports a full investigation along with stronger training and rules for new horses.

Wednesday's crash was the eighth horse-related incident in and around Central Park in the past 13 months, the conservancy said. It came days after a carriage horse named Deniz collapsed and died near West 72nd Street and West Drive.