Train Kills Elephant and Injures Its Mother (Burkina Faso)

On the night of January 12, 2014, a freight train out of Niangoloko, going toward Côte d’Ivoire, collided with a herd of elephant at Yendéré, killing a baby elephant and seriously injuring his mother, who was shot thereafter.
The collision between the freight train and the herd of elephants took place eight kilometers from the Ivorian border at around one o’clock in the morning. As noted, the baby elephant died as a result of the collision and the mother was found on its back beside the inert body of her baby. The rest of the herd had moved away.
According to agents who met at the scene of the accident, the mother elephant’s injuries were such that she could not survive. It was therefore put to death by forest officers. At around 9:00 a.m., more than an estimated 300 people from various backgrounds were at the site, with knives and machetes in hand, for everyone wanted to use the meat. It took forest officials and national police stepping in from Niangoloko to contain them. In such cases, it has been learned that the meat is distributed among local populations, some service departments, and prison inmates. Regarding the elephant’s head, it is exposed as a trophy, honoring the environment.
Despite the accident, the slightly damaged train was able to continue its journey of four hours and thirty-nine minutes.
In recent years herds of elephants have appeared in several localities in the Cascades region, sowing panic and disarray in the villages and fields. These pachyderms, not operating in their usual surroundings, cause extensive damage.