This horrifying video shows how a hunt saboteur was run over by a horse, and then left with injuries when riders chased him.
Sam Morley (37), from Stoke on Trent claims that he’s lucky to still be alive. He was injured when a hunt member drove into him in Ash Magna.
He said that Mr Morley was watching the North Shropshire Hunt and saw a group of about 15-20 riders riding towards him.
He captured the instant the 600kg (92-stone) horse crashed into him and sent him reeling.
Sam Morley, 37 years old, is from Stoke on Trent. A member of the hunt plowed into him in Ash Magna (Shropshire), leaving him hospitalized on Saturday afternoon
Morley is able to feel the full force of the horse’s impact while his colleague responds: “We have been run over by horses.”
The 37-year-old can be heard saying: ‘I felt everything in my back and neck crunch. Are you bleeding? You can see it all.
After paramedics arrived on the scene, police and police took the factory worker to the hospital with a spine board.
Morley, who has been suffering from concussions and swelling in his temples and muscles traumas to his neck/upper back since then has been disabled and cannot work.
The 37-year-old said: ‘We had been monitoring the group to make sure they were not hunting foxes and I was on a public footpath through a field at the time.
“An entourage of about 15-20 horses marched closely behind us at first. I think they were trying to intimidate us.
“If this wasn’t enough they turned around and began charging towards us.
“We are instructed to remain still when in such circumstances because it’s impossible to predict the horse’s direction and to prevent a collision.
Morley is now unable to work due to concussion.
“But, this horse crashed directly into me and my bones creaked as it did. This footage proves it and there is no doubt that the horse was deliberately crashing into me.
He stated that he lost consciousness for two seconds. This 600kg animal is like being struck by a car.
“It wasn’t a full-gallop, it was moving at a canter. It must have been around 20mph. And the impact absolutely ripped my skin out.
Paramedics arrived and removed me on a spinal board due to the injury to my neck.
“I was diagnosed with muscular trauma after a CT scan. Since then, I’ve been unable go to work. I am currently on painkillers as well as anti-inflammatory medications and I am bedbound.
“Police saw the footage, and I believe there is cause for ABH/GBH charges.”
“This wasn’t the first instance of this happening, but I was able to capture it on film.
“It is quite frightening to see these horses bearing down on you. These horses are large and strong and are built for speed and stamina.
Morley was watching the North Shropshire Hunt and saw a group of about 15-20 riders riding towards him. He said that they were riding ‘deliberately.’
In just 24 hours, the Staffordshire Hunt Saboteurs released it. The footage received almost 50,000 hits on social media.
Staffordshire Hunts Saboteurs spokesmen said that Mr Morley died after the hunter fled.
They said: “Fortunately, the horses’ hooves somehow missed him and his injuries consistent with severe impact.
“The Sab tried to walk, but fell repeatedly to the ground and lost consciousness for a brief moment.
“He then was able to get assistance, and was able to wait for an ambulance. He was informed that he was fortunate to still be breathing.
He captured the instant the horse, weighing 92 stone (600kg), crashed into him and sent him to his knees in pain.
According to the Staffordshire Hunt Saboteurs spokesperson, “We think that a lot of the animus from yesterday’s hunt resulted from sabs moving the hounds out of woodland from which a fox was seen. This huntsman was trying to flush the hounds with the fox.”
“The hunt has not been stopped from ending this season by the persistent pressure of local sabs or monitors.
‘Thank you to everyone who wished for a quick recovery of our Sab.
“We are hopeful that he will soon be back on the field, and will continue working alongside police to investigate.
According to a spokesperson for West Midlands Ambulance Service, “We were dispatched to Ash Lane on Saturday at 3:16pm to assist a patient with injuries sustained after an accident involving a horse.”
“We brought one ambulance and treated the man who sustained injuries which were not thought to be severe. Then he was taken to the hospital.
A spokesperson from West Mercia Police said: ‘We are aware of the video circulating on social media, and are carrying out investigations to understand if any offences occurred.’
MailOnline reached out to the Countryside Alliance and North Shropshire Hunt for comments.