Pittsburgh-area family's beloved mini horse dies after tornado hits property

PENN TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) — A Westmoreland County family is devastated after their mini horse was killed after a tornado hit their property on Wednesday.

Darla Cynkar lives off Pine Hollow Extension Road in Penn Township and said her husband was home when the storms hit.

"He heard the alert on his phone and he couldn't even get in the house fast enough to get the dogs in the basement. He thought when the house started to shake it was all over," Cynkar said.

She said her horses — Jack, Lilly and Nugget — were out in their field when the storm hit. Cynkar said she believes Jack may have been picked up by the strong winds before a tree fell on top of him.

"We went out in the field and we knew. He wasn't moving his little back legs," Cynkar said.

She said emergency crews, an animal rescue team and a veterinarian rushed to the scene, but it was too late. She said Jack's back was broken and he had to be euthanized.

"We ran out with him in the field. It was quick. He knew we were there and that we loved him," Cynkar said.

The National Weather Service said an EF-2 tornado hit, with wind speeds hitting over 100 miles per hour.

Cynkar said they had just adopted Jack a month ago. She believes he was 15 or 16 years old.

"He was a lot of fun. He was a joy. He melted your heart and made you happy," Cynkar said. "He would just go out and buck and run about and do crazy stuff but he was so much fun."

She said the tornado's path traveled around their property almost like a horseshoe, just missing their barn and house.

"All the fencing is down. Parts of the house are gone but easily fixed with homeowners insurance," Cynkar said.

She said despite multiple trees down across the property and losing Jack, she's glad that it wasn't worse.

"I've only been around 50 some years but never saw something like that before and I hope I never do again," Cynkar said.