A pregnant elephant died the most horrific death on 27 May when she ate a pineapple filled with firecrackers that was fed to her allegedly by some locals in Kerala, India.
The firecrackers exploded in her mouth, injuring her severely and inevitably led to her death. The heartbreaking incident was made known to a forest officer in northern Kerala’s Malapupuram district who narrated the incident on Facebook.
Mohan Krishnan, who was part of the Rapid Response Team to rescue the elephant, shared that the wild elephant had wandered into a nearby village to find food and was given the pineapple filled with firecrackers by some of the locals there, reported India Today.
“She trusted everyone,” he said.
“When the pineapple she ate exploded, she must have been shocked not thinking about herself, but about the child she was going to give birth to in 18 to 20 months.”
The elephant’s mouth and tongue were severely injured as she walked around the village still hungry and in extreme pain. Krishan said she could not eat anything due to her injuries.
“She didn’t harm a single human being even when she ran in searing pain in the streets of the village,” he said.
“She didn’t crush a single home. This is why I said, she is full of goodness.”
Eventually, the elephant made her way to the Velliyar River where she stood with her mouth and trunk in the water, assumingly to relief some of the pain. Krishnan said she was probably trying to prevent her wounds from festering due to flies and other insects.
The rescue team brought two captive elephants, Surendran and Neelakanthan, to aid them in getting the injured elephant out of the river, reported NDTV.
“But I think she had a sixth sense. She didn’t let us do anything,” Krishnan said.
Several hours passed as they attempted to rescue the elephant but to no avail. At 4pm, the elephant died while standing in the water. Her carcass was then put onto a truck and brought into the forest where she was cremated.
“She needs to be given the farewell she deserves. For that, we took her inside the forest in a lorry. She lay there on firewood, in the land she played and grew up,” Krishnan said.
“The doctor who did her post-mortem told me that she was not alone. I could sense his sadness though the expression on his face was not visible due to his mask.”
“We cremated her in a pyre there. We bowed before her and paid our last respects.”
This is not the first time elephants have been treated poorly to the point of death. Some have been used as slaves and die from pure exhaustion while others are shot dead. This has to stop!
Also read: Tikiri, the 70yo Weak & Malnourished Elephant Dies After Slavery Takes a Toll on Her Health
