Unfortunate Day For Man And Three Elephants In Thailand

By Linda Khoo Hui Li BANGKOK, April 16 (Bernama) -- A man was trampled to death by an elephant in the northeastern city of Nakhon Ratchasima while in another incident three elephants died during a freak storm at Mae Wang district in Thailand’s northern province of Chiang Mai. In the first incident, the 55-year-old Thai man was reported to have fed the elephant near a resort at Thanarat Road in Pak Chong district in Nakhon Ratchasima on Thursday. Local media reported the man who is a sanitation technical officer for the Nakhon Ratchasima City Municipality was on holiday with his family members when the tragic incident happened. He suffered multiple fractures and was found dead near a 28-year-old female elephant known ‘Cherry’. “Police believe he was in his Toyota pickup and stopped to give the elephant some sugarcane after spotting the pachyderm tied to a tree by the roadside. We think the elephant attacked him when he got too close,” reported Bangkok Post. According to mahout Peng Yimran, the female elephant was taken to the resort for tourists to take elephant rides. The mahout claimed the elephant was there many times before and was never aggressive. Meanwhile, in the second incident, three elephants were killed while another injured when a giant tree fell during a storm in Mae Wang district in Thailand’s northern province of Chiang Mai. According to Thai Elephant Alliance Facebook page, the storm hit the district and uprooted a 50m tall tree that landed on a elephant shelter where the six elephants were. “Two were killed on the spot while another suffered injuries and died later. Another three with injuries were treated by veterinarians,” it said. -- BERNAMA