Train mows down three elephants

Thiruvananthapuram: In a tragic incident, a train rammed into a herd of wild elephants, killing three of them on the spot at Kurumbapalayam on Monday.

The incident occurred as the train was en route to Palakkad railway station, after undergoing some repairs.

To add to the tragedy, the she elephant that was killed was pregnant. The two other elephants were tuskers. The impact of the collision made for a grisly scene, with the elephants' bodies badly mangled.

According to railway officials, a major rail disaster was averted. Four compartments of the train were derailed on impact.

There were no passengers in the train. It is believed that the herd contained many more elephants.

Following the accident, rail traffic on the Palakkad-Coimbatore route was disrupted for hours.

According to reports, the engine driver could not get out of the train soon after the accident as other elephants from the herd stood around the scene, and that the animals retreated to the nearby forest only when railway maintenance vehicles, police and local people rushed to the scene.