Horse rescued near Palm Springs put down due to injuries

(Riverside Fire Department)
(Riverside Fire Department)
(Riverside Fire Department)

The horse that was taken taken by helicopter out of a ravine it had fallen into near Palm Springs on Sunday died later that night.

The horse, named Spirit, was so badly injured in the incident that his owner chose to put him down at about 11 p.m., reports The Press Enterprise.

A second horse, Mo, suffered a fatal head injury during the rescue operation and third horse was able to escape on its own.

The horses were part of a volunteer mission over the weekend to deliver equipment as part of a hiking trail cleanup when they fell off a cliff into a ravine at Snow Creek.

“I wish we could have got to him earlier,” said Capt. Tyler Reynolds in an email to the newspaper.