Elephant wreaked havoc on NH-534 in Kotdwar.
A herd of elephants went on a rampage in Uttarakhand’s Kotdwar for around1.5 hours on Monday (17 Aug) morning. Near Lal Pul on NH-534, the elephants surrounded a tempo traveller carrying teachers on their way to school and attacked the vehicle.
The sudden attack triggered panic among the teachers. They managed to get out of the vehicle and ran towards a safe location to save their lives.
According to eyewitnesses, the herd remained around the tempo traveller for a considerable time. The elephants pushed the vehicle and damaged it by striking it with their trunks. They also threw around the teachers’ belongings kept inside the vehicle. No teacher has been reported injured in the incident.
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In Kotdwar, elephants surrounded a tempo traveller full of teachers, attacked and vandalised it.
Elephants damaged the tempo traveller by pushing it and attacking with their trunks.
The herd of elephants remained at the spot for about an hour and a half.
Elephants vandalised the vehicle in this manner.
Herd remained near the road for 1.5 hours
According to eyewitnesses, the herd remained around the area for nearly 1.5 hours. The vehicle suffered considerable damage during the incident. The presence of the elephants on the road also caused panic among other motorists passing through the area.
After the elephant attack, the car’s wreckage was seen scattered on the road.
Safety of vehicles near forest areas under scrutiny
Amid repeated incidents of elephants coming onto roads in Kotdwar, the safety of motorists travelling on routes adjoining forest areas has once again come under scrutiny. Elephant movement tends to increase particularly during the morning and evening hours.
The Forest Department faces the challenge of alerting people in sensitive areas in time and ensuring that traffic is safely controlled when elephants are present.
No teacher has been reported injured in the incident so far, but the elephant attack caused considerable damage to the tempo traveller.
