Charleston carriage horses taken off streets due to heat for third day in a row

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - High temperature readings prompted Charleston officials to order carriage horses off the streets Tuesday for the third day in a row.

Officials said the horses were removed around 1:06 p.m. after temperature readings had risen from 94 to 98 degrees over the course of 18 minutes.

“This kind of temperature spike is a serious and potentially dangerous matter," city of Charleston Director of Livability and Tourism Dan Riccio said. "We will continue to monitor temperatures throughout the day and only allow tours to resume when appropriate.”

On Monday, horses were pulled at 2:40 p.m. City spokesman Jack O’Toole said the heat led to the horses being ordered off the streets on Sunday as well.

Regulations require horses to be pulled from duty after four consecutive temperature readings indicating 95 degrees.

Temperatures are expected to remain between 96 and 100 degrees through Friday at least.

At 12:14 p.m., the high temperature at the Charleston Air Force Base was 97 degrees. This ties the old record set on the date in 1967 and 1964.

EDITOR’S NOTE: An earlier version of this story stated it was the second day in a row the horses were ordered back to their barns. City officials later confirmed that Tuesday marked the third consecutive day high temperatures forced the suspension of carriage tours.

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