Rider who died after being thrown from horse in Northamptonshire village named
The rider who died after being thrown from her horse when it was spooked by wind has been named by police.
Janette Smith, aged 28, of Somerford Road, Wellingborough, was riding along Sywell Road in Overstone with a friend who was also on horse-back at about 11am on Saturday when the accident happened.
Villagers said both horses started to canter and the 28-year-old’s whirled round and bucked, throwing her off.
Roland Smith, of Whistlefield Stables, Overstone, who is looking after the horse that threw the woman, whose family are understood to live in the village, said: “She had been riding a good many years since she was a girl, so it’s likely she knew what she was doing.
“She was always dressed in the correct high-vis gear and safety equipment, so it’s just very unfortunate. She died doing something she obviously loved.”
Officers from Northamptonshire Police closed the road for an hour and a half while emergency services attended the scene.
Inspector Daemon Johnson said: “About 11am we took a call that a 28-year-old female was riding her horse on the Sywell Road when it became distressed by the wind. She was thrown from the horse, landing on the road, and as a result sustained fatal injuries. No vehicles were involved, and we are just treating it as a tragic accident.” It is thought the rider lost her helmet during the fall.
The road was closed between about 11.10am and 12.20pm while emergency services attended the scene.
Email to a friend
Print this page- BREAKING NEWS: Tributes paid to Niamh Curry as brave five-year-old loses battle against cancer
- BREAKING NEWS: Pensioner dies after collision at Northampton shopping centre
- Man tied to tree and beaten on Northampton Racecourse
- BREAKING NEWS: Woman’s body found after ‘suicide’ in Northampton hotel room
- BREAKING NEWS: Seven-year-old boy dies following house fire in Northamptonshire
- Northampton binmen at ‘breaking point’
- Staff strike at Northampton school over academy plans forces closure
- Saints’ stadium plans get support as long as traffic issues solved
- Eastern European pupils helping school standards across Northampton
- Exclusive: PM David Cameron says Northamptonshire Police Commissioner role is “a big job for a big local figure”
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Northampton
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
