In 2017, 46 horses were tragically killed in the Lilac Fire that devastated an equestrian training facility in San Diego County. Dalia MacPhee is a Los Angeles-based clothing designer and passionate equestrian. The sudden loss of so many horses left her panicked, heartbroken, and worried for her own horse, Wolfie. She learned that during wildfires, horses are often set free to evacuate and escape on their own, but they can and do easily burn in a fire.
They tend to suffer burns on their backs, and their eyelashes can get scorched. So Dalia combined her love of horses and flair for fashion design to create a new way to increase safety for horses. Her idea is based on the traditional horse blanket, but it also uses a tracking device and Nomex — the same material that firefighters wear. Just brilliant. Dalia hopes she never has to use her own invention but is grateful to know it exists.
“We have fire extinguishers in our houses, but we don’t have something like this for our horses,” she says. In 2017, 46 horses were tragically killed in the Lilac Fire that devastated an equestrian training facility in San Diego County. Dalia MacPhee is a Los Angeles-based clothing designer and passionate equestrian. The sudden loss of so many horses left her panicked, heartbroken, and worried for her own horse, Wolfie. She learned that during wildfires, horses are often set free to evacuate and escape on their own, but they can and do easily burn in a fire.
They tend to suffer burns on their backs, and their eyelashes can get scorched. So Dalia combined her love of horses and flair for fashion design to create a new way to increase safety for horses. Her idea is based on the traditional horse blanket, but it also uses a tracking device and Nomex — the same material that firefighters wear. Just brilliant. Dalia hopes she never has to use her own invention but is grateful to know it exists. “We have fire extinguishers in our houses, but we don’t have something like this for our horses,” she says.