Davis firefighters pull stranded horse from Jordan River

A horse was stuck in the Jordan River for more than three hours as firefighters struggled to free the animal Thursday night.

A woman was riding the horse across a small concrete bridge when the animal spooked and fell into the river about 6:30 p.m., said South Davis Metro Fire Battalion Chief Steve Kubisch.

"The banks are so steep and muddy that the horse couldn't get up," he said. "It kept getting weaker and weaker and weaker."

It took a massive effort by firefighters using a car hoist but not designed to handle a 1,500 pound animal.

"We had guys in the water for two hours," Kubisch said. "They'd get her halfway up and she'd start to flail around. They probably had her out three times and she kept falling back."

The animal was finally freed from the river about 9:30 p.m. and taken to a veterinarian.

"She was hypothermic. She was in pretty bad shape," Kubisch said. "We'll just have to wait and see."