Horror at Royal Ascot as race-goers are thrown from a horse-drawn carriage and injured when the animals ‘are spooked by a car horn’ and bolt – with one ploughing through a fashion boutique’s front window

A horse pulling a carriage full of racegoers bolted and smashed through a shop window outside Royal Ascot after allegedly being panicked by a car horn.

The horse was one of four pulling a traditional coaching carriage when it slipped at a roundabout on Ascot High Street.

Eyewitnesses said the horses careered into a clothes shop window, throwing the driver and several people off its high sided carriage.

The horse was one of four pulling a traditional coaching carriage when it slipped at a roundabout on Ascot High Street

Eyewitnesses said the horses careered into a clothes shop window, throwing the driver and several people off its high sided carriage

A horse was treated for minor injuries after crashing through the shop window in Ascot 

A section of the window of Natalya Couture was completely smashed with glass lying around the displays and a shutter at the back of the space buckled.

A policeman at the scene said he understood the incident involved four horses. 

Taxi driver Mohamad Amjad said it appeared that the carriage was coming down the road and potentially was panicked by a horn blowing.

He said it seemed to be the case that the front two horses 'slid' into the shop front, adding that one horse appeared badly injured.

'People put towels on to try to control the blood,' he said.

Gary Copeland tweeted: 'Just witnessed an awful accident in Ascot, one of the large horse carriages bolted down the high street right in front of me and careered over a roundabout and through a shop window!

'People thrown off and horses jammed in the glass window! Not nice to see.

'I saw several people thrown off, and two of the horses were jammed in the window, it looked like one was down in its side. It didn't look good at all.

'The driver was going so fast, at the roundabout one horse just slipped over and that was it then, carnage. Awful.

Left, shards of glass, manure and bloodstains where the horse smashed through the shop window. Right, officers cordoned off the scene earlier tonight

Eyewitnesses said several horses careered into a shop window throwing the driver and several people off its high sided carriage

The horse slipped at this roundabout on Ascot High Street and plunged into the Nataliya clothes shop

'I was two cars behind it, I saw the police car move out of the way as it was in front and I think the driver must have seen the horses bolting towards it.

'If something spooked them it wasn't the police car.' 

'People put towels on to try to control the blood,' he said.

Taxi driver Stefan Gulgheru, 35, added: 'The horses were going very very fast and when they got to the roundabout they was out of control and one slipped.

'The carriage overturned. It was terrible. They are going to have to put one of the horses down.' 

A spokesman for Thames Valley Police said: 'Thames Valley Police officers attended an incident at about 6pm today in High Street, Ascot, in which a horse drawn carriage overturned.

'One of the horses pulling the carriage became loose from the vehicle and collided with a shop window. 

'It sustained minor injuries as a result of the incident and has been taken away from the scene for treatment.

'The passengers in the carriage also sustained minor injuries. Road closures were put in place and these have since been lifted.' 

Shards of glass and manure remain on the pavement within the police tape and what appears to be blood is also visible on a section of the smashed front. 

South Central Ambulance Service confirmed they had medics on standby at the racecourse and that no-one was injured during the incident.