A man has been trampled to death early on Monday morning by a wild elephant near his hometown. It comes just hours after a teenager was seriously injured by an elephant in a small tribal town.
The 55-year-old man died after the incident in Maharajakadai, based in the Indian province of Tamil Nadu. The 14-year-old, named Sarath, was injured by a separate elephant trampling in Pakkom in the province of Kerala, news outlets say. This town is located around 190 miles west of Tamil Nadu.
The two tragedies took place within 24 hours, with Sarath sustaining serious injuries on Sunday evening. He was walking home from a wedding with friends, who managed to escape unharmed. However, Sarah was seriously injured and rushed to Medical College Hospital after sustaining fractures to his left ribs.
Sambasivan died from his injuries after being trampled as he walked to land he owned nearby.
“Two wild elephants which had strayed into the area, attacked Sambasivam suddenly, and he died on the spot,” the deputy superintendent of police, C Sangu, told The Times of India.
However, his death has caused upset in his village, as several inhabitants then staged a sit-in protest on a nearby road. They demanded forest officials chase the elephants away from the area and into the jungle.
Asian elephants in India, which are on the list of endangered species, don’t often attack humans in the wild. They are usually docile creatures but can be dangerous if they feel threatened or are provoked.
There are only between 20,000 and 40,000 of their kind left in the wild. It’s believed half of the population resides in India.
African elephants are much larger, but Asian elephants can still weigh up to 8,000 pounds. Therefore, serious injuries or death are usually the result of trampling.
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in India say approximately 500 people are killed by them each year.
It’s said more attacks may occur during breeding season, say when mothers are more protective after recently giving birth or male elephants can be more aggressive.
Jessica Turner, a veterinary science PhD student told Newsweek: “Elephants have strong social bonds, this being especially true of the mother-calf bond.”
The International Fund for Animal Welfare states elephants can also destroy homes and crops if they’re threatened. If people get too close, it can trigger defensive behaviors that lead to injury or death.
However, climate change, habitats being destroyed, natural resources depleting as well as local development activities are said to be putting pressure on the mammals.
Elephants can eat up to 150kg of forage and drink up to 190 liters of water a day, and have to navigate large areas to eat and drink. It is during their roaming that human and elephant conflict can occur.
Sri Lanka reports that 200 elephants die each year, and this number is 100 in India. When it comes to humans, up to 200 people have died in Kenya between 2010 and 2017.
