'I was only afraid of getting kicked': Certis officer who led runaway horse on BKE back to safety

Sergeant (APF) Uvarajah A/L Krishnasamy was shocked to hear about a runaway horse on the road.

"But my first thought was how to ensure the safety of both the horse and other road users," said the 39-year-old Certis officer who led the animal back to safety.

The horse had escaped from the Singapore Turf Club and galloped towards Turf Club Avenue exit onto Bukit Timah Expressway on Saturday (July 8).

Videos circulating online showed the horse roaming the expressway.

The Land Transport Authority was alerted and activated Certis’ Expressway Monitoring and Advisory System Team to assess and resolve the situation.

Upon spotting the horse at the exit, SGT (APF) Uva stopped his motorbike by the roadside and walked towards the horse.

He held on to the horse's lead firmly and gained the trust of the horse with constant patting to calm and reassure it.

The Certis officer ushered the horse steadily on the road towards Singapore Turf Club until a horse handler from Singapore Turf Club arrived and took over the duty.

According to the horse handler, the horse is new in the horse stable and was practising with a new trainer when the horse panicked and ran away from the unsecured gate of the horse stable.

Stomper Sam shared a 16-second video showing SGT (APF) Uva walking with the horse on the road.

“When I got to the horse, it was a very big and muscular horse, and I was only afraid of getting kicked," said the Certis officer, who is a father of two and animal lover with four dogs.

"I’ve rode a horse before on holiday, but I’ve never actually had to handle one… I figured that it must be feeling scared so I made sure to switch off my siren and lights on my bike and observe it slowly as I made my way towards it."

Using his bike to prevent the horse from going farther on the road, SGT (APF) Uva observed it first and waited for the right moment before patting its face to calm it down and win its trust.

“Maybe my uniform looked like that of a jockey, and was familiar to him. To keep myself safe, I made sure to hold on to the horse’s lead closely and walk in front of it as I guided it away from the road and back towards the Turf Club.

"The most challenging thing was having to handle the horse while directing traffic away at the same time."

A Singapore Turf Club spokesman told The Straits Times: “We are aware that a horse belonging to Bukit Timah Saddle Club found its way outside its stable and onto the roads briefly.

"It has since been returned safely to its stable.”