Elephant runs amok in Angamaly; kills man, injures another

Angamaly: A 40-year-old man was killed and another injured after an elephant ran amok near the Kidangoor Mahavishnu Temple in Angamaly on Friday. The victim was identified as Vishnu, a native of Kollam, who was driving the vehicle that transported the elephant, temple authorities told Onmanorama. The injured mahout, Pradeep, is undergoing treatment.

The elephant, Mayyanad Parthasarathy, had been brought from Kollam for a festival at a nearby temple and was taken to the Kidangoor Mahavishnu Temple for blessings. However, soon after reaching there, the elephant became agitated, broke its chain and ran amok.

Elephant squad personnel, wildlife authorities and the police later fired tranquilliser darts and brought the animal under control, managing to chain it to a coconut tree at the ground near the temple.

According to Angamaly police, the elephant was in musth and rammed into its mahout and a helper around 9.45 am when they tried to rein in the elephant. After nearly two hours of efforts by police and forest officials, the animal was brought under control by 12.30 pm, an officer said. Police added that the mahout sustained minor injuries and was under observation at a nearby hospital in Angamaly.

According to residents, the elephant wreaked havoc on the ground adjacent to the temple, flipping a car and a scooter, damaging both. The animal also rammed into the wall of a house nearby. Two sides of the ground were blocked to prevent the animal from escaping, as it is a residential area, they said.