Video: Wild elephant saves itself after fighting overflowing Kerala river for nearly three hours

Thiruvananthapuram: After nearly three hours of spirited fight, a wild elephant, caught in the flooded Chalakudy River in the south Indian state of Kerala, managed to wade to safety on Tuesday.

With the river in spate, none of the Forest Department staff were able to reach the wild elephant. They could only watch the elephant fight the currents tenaciously.

According to local poeple, the elephant had been swept away for around 2km in the river before it fought the currents with the trunk by locating rocks on the river banks. After struggling for close to three hours, it finally managed swim ashore and to re-enter the forest.

Forest officials had a difficult time clearing a large crowd that had gathered to watch the elephant caught in the fast-flowing waters. However, not everybody was happy with the elephant’s escape. Angry residents, who have been tormented by wild elephants which cause huge damage to their farms, was hoping that the waters would take away the wild elephant.

“If this is taken away by the waters, we will be saved as there will be one wild elephant less attacking us. The officials have been unable to save us from these wild elephants,” said an angry resident said.