Plenty of people imagine themselves doing heroic feats. One teenage girl in California recently proved she has what it takes to be a hero when push comes to shove.
During the recent wildfires in Los Angeles County, 16-year-old equestrian Kalyna Fedorowycz found herself presented with a scary dilemma.
As reported by the Chronicle of the Horse, a horse named Sovereignty at Walker Horse Farms, where Fedorowycz trains, was left behind after balking at attempts to get him into a trailer for evacuation.
After returning to the area with her father to check on their house, which fortunately didn't suffer significant damage from the fires, Kalyna became concerned for Sovereignty.
"Once I got up there and saw all the smoke and flames, I was so worried about him," Kalyna told the Chronicle of the Horse. "We forgot about getting anything out of our house. We just drove straight to the barn."
After finding the horse still at the farm, Kalyna could only think of one viable solution: saddling up and leading Sovereignty to safety.
She shared a video, which was spotlighted by Good News Network, taken by her father, showing Kalyna guiding the horse away from the area — sometimes while walking or jogging beside him, other times while riding. The teenage girl patiently coaxed Sovereignty through high winds, flaming debris, clouds of smoke, fallen trees, and more on the 14-mile journey, which took four hours with breaks.
@kkf_eq I thought I would post some of the videos my dad took as he drove behind me. I can't thank everybody enough for all of the love and support. I hope everyone stays safe! 💞🔥
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Kalyna's father, Markian, told the Chronicle of the Horse how proud he was of his daughter. "Kalyna's hard to say no to. She said, 'We've got to get him out of here.' … It was exciting to see her persevere like that, and I'm really proud of her."
A similar sentiment was shared by a local supply shop for equestrians on Facebook: "Kalyna is brave beyond her years, and we are so proud to know her."
As noted by a study from World Weather Attribution at Imperial College London, a number of factors related to rising global temperatures contributed to the severity of the fires. Those included overlapping reduced rainfall, 100-mile-per-hour winds in the area, and drought conditions.
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The announcement of those findings added, "Researchers warn that L.A. will get drier and more flammable with continued fossil fuel burning, which is causing earth's temperature to rise."
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Move somewhere else 🌎 Horses and other animals are always in danger when wildfires tear through their locales. Though many people do their best to save their animals, the creatures might get so scared that they run away, making rescue attempts difficult.
Even when horses survive wildfires, the smoke from these fires can significantly affect their health. According to SmartPak Equine, health effects from smoke inhalation in horses can range from simple irritation to severe damage to the lungs' tissue.
Thankfully, Fedorowycz's determination and care saved Sovereignty.
As noted by Good News Network, one TikTok user commented, "I don't think most people realize how challenging something like this is. As someone who's worked with other people's horses, I say this was so brave, and I have mad respect for you."
Not everyone can save a horse from a wildfire, but if you want to support those rescuing horses in Los Angeles County, the Los Angeles Equestrian Center has set up a resources page with opportunities to help.
You can also reduce the risk of wildfires by ensuring you dispose of cigarettes and fireworks properly and never leave campfires burning unattended. More broadly, the best way to lessen the risk of wildfires and other extreme weather events is to help reduce rising global temperatures, which individuals can do by using less plastic, making energy-efficient upgrades, and voting for pro-climate political candidates.
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