BANGKOK, Thailand – A rescue van transporting injured patients to the hospital struck a wild elephant crossing a forest road in the 500-Rai Wildlife Area in Chachoengsao province on October 28, leaving the animal temporarily injured but able to walk back into the forest.
The accident occurred around 11:30 p.m. on Ban Na Road in Sanam Chai Khet District while the rescue van, operated by Phanom emergency unit (Thung Praya station), was en route to deliver three accident victims from a separate roadside crash to Sanam Chai Khet Hospital. A large male elephant, approximately five years old, crossed the road at a curved, dark section, leaving the driver unable to stop in time.
The van was damaged, and rescue personnel onboard suffered minor injuries, but the patients being transported were unharmed. The elephant initially lay on the road, raising its trunk in apparent pain, before walking back into the forest. Authorities dispatched another rescue vehicle to continue transporting patients and arranged a tow truck to remove the damaged van.
Local officials coordinated with the Khao Ang Rue Nai Wildlife Sanctuary to monitor the elephant and plan preventive measures, warning drivers to exercise extra caution in this area, where wild elephants frequently cross at night. (TNA)
