Wayanad: An elderly man was trampled to death by a wild elephant at Chembra Peak road at Erumakolly here around 9 pm, on Thursday. The deceased is Arumukhan, (64),  a native of Poolakkunnu near Erumakolly. The man who is employed in a shop at Meppadi encountered the elephant while heading home. 

He had left the town around 8 pm after closing the shop, said Basheer PK, a native of Meppadi.

Arumukhan, a former employee of a tea plantation here, has been engaged in cardamom farming and has assisted in a spices shop here since retirement. Migrated from Tamil Nadu decades ago, Arumukhan and his family settled here after his retirement. 

The Rapid Response Team of Meppadi forest range, headed by Meppadi Range Officer P Biju, has already rushed to the spot. Nestled on the foothill of Chembra Peak, the forest department is incommunicado, as the area is a signal shadow zone. A police team from the Meppadi police station also reached the spot.   

The region is notorious for its elephant raids. With the jackfruit season back, elephant herds climb down from the Chembra Hills raid into farm lands and lavish on the jackfruits, triggering much hue and cry from the public.

Wild elephant attack deaths are on the rise in the state with the advent of summer. On April 14, two tribals were trampled to death by a wild jumbo in Thrissur’s Athitappilly. In Palakkad, a 22-year-old youth was killed in a wild elephant attack at Mundur in Palakkad on April 6.