Park rangers from Salak Phra wildlife sanctuary, in Thailand’s western province of Kanchanaburi, have been trying to locate and sedate a wounded elephant, after it was hit by a pickup truck and is believed to have sustained a broken leg on Sunday.
The chief of the sanctuary, Paitoon Intharabut, said that two women in the vehicle were also injured, but driver was unhurt. The pickup truck sustained heavy damage and was abandoned on the roadside, while the injured were taken to a nearby hospital.
Park officials suspect that the driver of the vehicle was travelling at speed at the time of the accident, as they found no skid marks on the road.
About ten officials, accompanied by two veterinarians, conducted a search for the apparently wounded elephant yesterday afternoon, by following a trail of fallen trees and broken branches.
They located the elephant in the woods on the edge of the wildlife sanctuary. The animal appeared to be in pain and used its trunk to beat the forest floor while trumpeting loudly.
Officials said they could not approach the elephant for fear of getting hurt, as it appeared to be angry.
They will try to sedate the animal again today and to treat it with amoxicillin, Clavulanic acid and ibuprofen, mixed in food.
