Horses Rescued From Receiving Barn Fire at Ellis Park

Ellis Park's receiving barn caught fire during the early hours of the morning Aug. 22, but the quick response from horsemen and the Henderson, Ky., community ensured that each of the seven horses stabled in the barn at the time were rescued. 

The fire began somewhere between 4:00 and 4:15 a.m. CT, Ellis Park general manager Jeff Inman said at a press conference later Sunday morning with Baskett Fire chief Brent Morrow and director of Henderson Emergency Management Kenny Garrett. A call was made to the fire department at 4:21 a.m. and firefighters arrived at 4:39 a.m.

"First I want to thank these gentlemen for their quick and timely arrival in handling this. We didn't have any issues," Inman said during the press conference, which was posted online by 14 News. "We had one minor injury of one of our equine athletes, but other than that everyone's safe and sound. That is the most important part of this."

The track canceled morning training and racing Sunday after the fire. Training is expected to continue Monday and racing will resume Friday. 

"The backside always pulls together," Inman told BloodHorse later Sunday afternoon. "We still need some receiving spots for Friday's race meet. The horsemen all came up to make sure we cleared space and got bedding for the horses. Just the grooms and everybody running out at four o'clock in the morning to get those horses out… Everybody back there always pulls together, without fail.

"The people back there couldn't be better. When something happens, they pull together," he added. "We were able to consolidate some barn space—we're obviously pretty full with Churchill closed (due to renovations of its turf track)—getting about 40 spots that we need for shipments, so that the meet goes on next weekend. Everybody pulled together. We don't see an issue with opening on Friday at this time and we should be training tomorrow as well."

The fire appears to have been "electrical in nature" at this point in time, Morrow said during the press conference.

Inman added: "We're going to continue to investigate and we'll be happy to tell you when that investigation is complete. We don't want to jump to conclusions right now, but it does seem to be electrical."

Morrow also stated that the barn, which Inman said was 25 years old and had about 48 stalls, is a "total loss" and that seven different fire departments came from the surrounding area with water tanker trucks. Garrett noted that the Henderson County Road Department helped by bringing in heavy equipment to help with clean up.

Inman told BloodHorse that "at this point in time we've got some folks just keeping an eye out. Our people have a perimeter, watching for hotspots and such."

Sunday morning's fire followed an eventful Saturday afternoon at Ellis Park when the 2-year-old filly Bold and Bossy, was slated to make her debut in the first race of the day but instead unseated her rider, dashed outside the racetrack, and ran loose on a highway before being apprehended.

KING: Racehorse Avoids Major Injury After Running on Highway

Bold and Bossy, trained by Michael Ann Ewing, was among the horses in the receiving barn Sunday morning when the structure caught fire. A day earlier, the decision was made with Ewing's own vet, Dr. Joe Morgan, to keep her at Ellis overnight to reduce the added stress of being transported back to Ewing's base at The Thoroughbred Center in Lexington.

After transporting the filly by equine ambulance to the receiving barn at Ellis Park, the state veterinarian gave her fluids to help combat dehydration. Ewing's assistant Kelsey Wallace stayed overnight to check on the filly and continue delivering fluids. 

"This morning, we got a call from our vet (Dr. Morgan): 'The receiving barn was burning down. We know someone got your filly out, but we can't find her,'" Ewing said Sunday. "We found out she was in Eddie Kenneally's barn. It was very dark this morning to see, but the filly is burned over her neck, shoulders, withers, and back."

Ewing met Wallace and the filly at Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington Sunday at about 10 a.m. ET to continue assessing Bold and Bossy's condition. The filly is being kept in an air-conditioned stall and receiving fluids as blood work is run under the care of Dr. Kate Christie. A full recovery is expected, and Bold and Bossy will receive plenty of time off to recuperate.

"It's amazing, who knew—you think leaving her overnight is for the best, then there is a barn fire. How much worse can it be?" Ewing said.

Recalling Saturday's events, Ewing said: "Remarkably, she was not hit, killing herself or anyone else. She grabbed a quarter, but not bad at all. She lost a couple of shoes; she ran more than six miles.

"Thanks to the great community of horsemen and Ellis Park vets and communications directors, people were calling me, letting me know where she was headed. Meanwhile, numerous people jumped in trucks to try and find her."

Trainer Jason Barkley had three horses in the receiving barn Sunday morning who have since returned to his base at Trackside Training Center in Louisville. 

"We are getting them settled in back in Louisville. All appear to be OK and happy to be home," Barkley told BloodHorse via text Sunday afternoon. "Thankful that the grooms at Ellis that were first on the scene were able to get them out."

"It has been a busy weekend for Ellis Park," Inman said during the press conference. "Obviously yesterday we had a little bit of an issue with a horse that bucked its jockey, made it onto Highway 41. We were very pleased to make sure that that horse was collected safely by our local horsemen. It led us a merry chase, I will say, but that ended fine.

"While (the fire) is much more serious, we did complete this issue with nobody seriously harmed, whether equine or human. We're very, very appreciative of that. We're very grateful here at Ellis Park that everybody here is safe. These folks and the horses and our people are our family, and that's our biggest concern."