Two female elephants that fell into a 5ft earthen trough filled with water at an agricultural field in Mangalapalayam west beat located in the Boluvampatti forest arrange, were rescued by forest officials on Tuesday.
Both elephants had been struggling to climb out of the trough for three hours before they were rescued after earth movers were used to level the trough.
At 8pm on Tuesday, Boluvampatti forest team were notified that two female elephants aged about 18 and 8 years had fallen into an earthen trough at Church Tottam. The water was being pumped into a brick kiln chamber in the vicinity.
The team rushed to the spot and attempted to rescue the elephants.
“A herd of elephants were crossing the agricultural field to get to the reserve forest boundary early Tuesday morning. Unfortunately, an eight-year-old female elephant fell into the trough. Another 18-year-old female elephant also fell into the trough while attempting to rescue the younger animal,” said Dinesh Kumar.
An earth mover was brought in to level the trough. “The rest of the herd was waiting in the reserve forest area, trumpeting in their anxiety. After levelling the land, the 18-year-old elephant managed to walk out of the trough. It took a few hours more for the younger elephant to come out of the trough,” said Dinesh Kumar.