OPELOUSAS, La. — An ambulance crew assigned to provide medical care for jockeys nearly caused a disaster at Evangeline Downs in Opelousas when it drove the wrong way toward a field of speeding horses during a Nov. 22 race.
As eight veteran jockeys approached the turn in the 870-yard event, several jockeys were forced to pull up or angle their mounts off the rail when a slow-moving Acadian Ambulance vehicle suddenly appeared on the inside of the track, according to the Paulick Report.
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None of the jockeys and horses made contact with the ambulance. The closest call came for jockey E.T. Vera and Kvn Valiant Corona, who broke from the inside post and had to take evasive action.
“I guess there’s a first for everything,” Kellenberger posted on social media. “Thank God we all made it back safe. Not to mention these were nearly all stakes horses.”
The stewards declared the race a “no contest,” and all wagers were refunded.
