A broad elephant that fell into a well in southern India has been rescued by crane after a 16-hour rescue mission involving dozens of rangers and firefighters.
The elephant fell more than 20 meters (70 feet) after entering a village in Tamil Nadu state last week in search of food. “The villagers heard sounds and saw that the animal had fallen into the well,” local ranger Rajkumar told AFP. He said they believed he might have been trying to escape a pack of dogs.
Frightened at first, the villagers called the authorities when they realized he could die unless rescued. About 50 rangers and firefighters rushed to the village, where they initially tried to get water from the well, but the startled creature kept pushing the equipment they were using. Rescuers then tried to shoot the 8-foot (2.4-meter) elephant with tranquilizer darts. “Of the three times we tried, we succeeded twice,” Rajkumar said.
