Zeldine Pretorius, a 17-year-old horse guide from Bon Accord Horse Trails, was taken to hospital after her horse reportedly stepped onto a live power cable just off the Rosslyn road in Pretoria on Friday.

The Pretorius family had a harrowing experience as they worried about their loved one who was taken to a hospital and their beloved horse, Kerneels, who died in the incident.

Zeldine’s mother, Ansie Pretorius says she would never have expected something like this would happen.

She adds that her daughter went riding every day. “She is the head guide at Bon Accord Stables. They are always trying to find new routes they can take people on.”

On the day of the incident, Pretorius and a friend had gone riding, thinking that a huge open space alongside the Rosslyn road towards Brits would make a good new route. The day before, Pretorius’ friend had done the route, so they set out to retrace their steps.

Pretorius suddenly felt a strong electrical shock and she and her horse collapsed. Kerneels fell on top of Pretorius and they were both stuck on top of the power lines.

Pretorius managed to escape, with Pretorius’ mother saying: “Luckily she wasn’t alone, I can’t even think about it – what would have happened?”

Pretorius, once freed, attempted to help her horse and was electrocuted a second time.

Police and Tshwane emergency services personnel were called to the scene and Pretorius was taken to the hospital for assessment.

Police say the power cables were illegal connections to a nearby community. A case could not be opened, but police removed the power connections after the incident.

Rescuers had to wait for four hours for the metro to disconnect the power to the area to safely remove the cables and free Kerneels. Due to the high voltage three-phase power line, fire extinguishers had to be used to prevent Kerneels’ corpse from catching alight.

Pretorius’ mother says her daughter is recovering at home and is in a great deal of pain all over her body. She is struggling mentally as she lost her horse, who was like a family member to them.

Zeldine’s sister, Anchen Pretorius says Kerneels was a rescue horse who was only about six years old and that Zeldine and her horse were almost inseparable.

Pretorius’ mother adds: “Zeldine had this horse for almost a year, and since she got this horse she did better at school,  it helped raise her self-esteem and she did better in life.”