Elephants are considered to be one of the wisest and most majestic species in the entire animal kingdom. They are also one of the largest animals that have walked the earth. Seeing one up close is amazing enough but what if you see a whole herd up close?
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Wild elephants are known to be very independent and are often distrustful of human beings. They often prefer to have little to no contact at all with the human species. But for emergencies, even the wild elephants know when they need a human being’s help.
The elephants of India
In India, 80% of the population are Hindus. In the Hindu religion, the elephant is considered a sacred animal because it is a living incarnation of Ganesh. Ganesh is an elephant-headed deity who is one of the most important gods in Hinduism.
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Ganesh is said to be a remover of obstacles, a source of wisdom and intellect, and provides good luck and fortune. Because of this, elephants are considered to be sacred symbols of peace, power, mental strength, royalty, and divinity.
Roaming free
This is why in India, it is nothing new to see people letting wild elephants roaming free. Although these elephants prefer to stay away, the locals who were fortunate enough to see them around describe them as regal and majestic creatures. Because the elephants are sacred, the locals learned to live alongside the elephants and respected their territory.
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Since the elephants have their own space, they do not pose a threat to the locals. Tourists often have to be warned not to approach the elephant’s territory. Once the elephants feel that the boundaries have been crossed, they can retaliate and inflict fatal damage.
The Urulanthanni River
In the southern tip of India lies the Urulanthanni River. The river is home to a local elephant herd because it is surrounded by lush forests. Here, the wild elephants can roam freely to their heart’s content because they know that the humans will not bother them there.
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The locals living near the idea would often witness the elephant herd pass by. The ground would shake under their weight and although they sometimes feel frightened, they are also amazed and overwhelmed at the sight of the procession.
A new addition to the herd
The locals living nearby are used to seeing the elephant procession. This time, they saw the herd making its way towards the Urulanthanni River. The usual route is that the herd would cross the river to be able to get into the forest.
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This time though the herd had a new addition. They had a baby elephant with them. The baby elephant was easily spotted as it was the smallest in the group. It did not even come half as tall as the adults in the herd.
Unexpected trouble
And so the elephant heard prepared to cross the Urulanthanni River. However, the baby elephant was not yet used to crossing the river. As they were about to cross, the baby, unfortunately, fell into a mud hole near the riverbank.
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The baby elephant was drenched with mud and found it difficult to move. The mud hole was quite deep and the adult elephants had difficulty reaching the baby. The rest of the herd stopped on their tracks and gathered around the mud hole, not sure what to do.
Making things worse
The baby, who found itself in a new and difficult situation started to struggle as it tried to climb up the hole. The mud hole was as big as the baby elephant and there was nothing in it to help the baby move itself upward.
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The baby’s desperate attempts to get out of the hole were also draining the energy he has. The mud hole had a thick layer of mud – moving around it would be like trying to move in wet concrete. It started to feel pain and agony and the baby was crying in no time.
Feeling helpless
The herd could do nothing but watch as their youngest member struggled in the mud hole. The baby was starting to show signs of exhaustion. If the baby gives up, the mud hole could easily swallow him up.
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The adults paced back and forth around the area. Elephants are naturally smart – they knew that they could not get in the hole as it would only make the situation worse. But leaving the baby behind is also not an option.
Sticking together
Elephants always travel in herds. You barely see an elephant roaming around alone. They are known to go around in groups and help each other survive. They are also very compassionate about each other. The herd functions as a family and everyone is deeply valued from the oldest member to the youngest. When one member is in danger, they help each other out. No one gets left behind.
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The whole herd was getting anxious. It did not help that the sun was at its peak by then. This meant that the mud would soon cake up and trap the baby elephant for good. Something had to be done right away. The baby elephant’s cries started to fade away as fatigue took over. It seemed to just stand still now, ready to accept its fate. Then, the baby elephant’s eyes closed.
A call for help
Fearing that the baby had lost all hope, the older elephants started to give out a thunderous cry to express their anguish. The rest of the herd followed suit. Together, they have created a deafening sound that could be heard for miles. The cries they made were similar to a loud trumpet – one whose note expressed heartbreak and anguish. Despite being exhausted from the heat, they tried to use their voices to help the little one.
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Hearing the herd’s cries seemed to wake up the baby and restore its energy. The baby recognized the cries and knew that he was not alone. The baby tried once more to get out of the hole. However, the sides of the mud hole were slippery so the baby failed with every attempt. The baby felt tired again and slumped back into the hole.
Curious locals
The local community living near the area was able to hear the loud sounds the elephants made. At first, they could not determine what it was or where it came from. But the strange noises continued and the locals had a feeling that something was wrong.
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A group tried to find where the noise was coming from. They were able to determine that the sound came from the forest. Although they were frightened about the unusual noise, the locals were curious and approached cautiously.
The herd was spotted
When the locals reached the river bend, they were able to see the elephant herd. They were so close that the elephant’s screams were enough to make them go deaf. But some of them approached the herd bravely to try to see what was going on. Some guessed that the herd must have cornered a dangerous predator. The locals knew that there were feline predators in the forest. Was it safe to approach the herd?
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The braver part of the group approached the herd cautiously, knowing that wild elephants can attack humans who crossed their territory. But curiosity overpowered fear and as they approached, they were surprised to see the herd clear out and make way for them. It is as if the elephants knew that help was nearby. The humans moved forward bravely after seeing that the elephants did not look angry. In fact, the elephants seemed to be relieved that they were there.
Getting help
The brave group was shocked when they saw the baby elephant stuck in the mud hole. However, they also know that even if the elephant was a baby, it was still too big and heavy to be lifted up by the group with just their bare hands.
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But the humans also would not let the young elephant die in the mud hole. Some members of the group were sent back to get the authorities. They thought that government officials will be able to get the right equipment to rescue the poor baby elephant.
Time passes slowly
Hours had passed and it started to get dark. Evening fell and some of the locals remained with the herd to watch over the baby. The baby elephant seemed to have stopped moving, which alarmed the humans. They were hoping the baby could hold on a little bit more – even if every second in the mud hole was torture.
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Finally, a caravan of cars came. The locals who remained with the herd cheered when they saw the headlights. The elephants seemed to understand that this was a good sign and welcomed the approaching vehicles by moving around to help the new group get closer to the mud hole.
Assessing the situation
The group who came identified themselves as forest and wildlife officers. They started to assess the scene and realized that they needed more serious equipment to get the baby elephant out of the mud hole.
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One of the officers had to go back to town and get additional support. Sadly, the baby elephant will not be rescued that night. Some of the officers and the locals who first helped the elephants decided to stay and set up camp in the area as they waited for additional help.
A new day begins
It was already morning when they heard the distant rumbling of approaching vehicles. The wildlife officers saw that their teammate is back with another team of rescuers and a giant excavator. They also brought with them other additional tools that they might need to extract the baby elephant.
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By this time, the baby elephant had been in the mud hole for more than a day. The elephant herd was starting to pace around, showing their restlessness and anxiety. The rescuers felt more determined to rescue the baby after seeing how distraught the herd was.
News spread around town
All the commotion of the strange cries, heavy machinery, and officials going into the forests made a lot of people curious. Word spread about the trapped baby elephant and curious crowds started to arrive in the area.
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The officers and rescue team had to restrict the area to restrain the crowd. The situation was difficult enough as it is they do not need a curious crowd to be a distraction or to add more stress to the herd.
The plan
A baby elephant could weigh anywhere between 400 and 600 pounds. And since their main goal is to make sure that the baby gets out safely and alive, they had to be very careful. The rescue team and wildlife officers gathered together to formulate a plan.
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It was decided that the excavator should be used. By this time, the baby elephant was solidly lodged into the mud. There were smaller tools that could be used to lose the mud but time was not on their side.
The execution
The excavator’s operator started out by digging and removing the mud around the baby elephant. This will help release the baby and widen the space around it so it can finally move around comfortably.
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It was not safe to lift the baby using the excavator since they did not know how much the elephant weighed. So, they had to create a pathway that the baby elephant could use to climb up to the safer ground. The job took hours.
The herd waits
The herd seemed to acknowledge the help they were getting. They gave way for the excavator to move around the mud hole. And even if the excavator was huge and noisy, the elephants did not feel threatened or get nervous around it. They were more focused on their youngest member, who was stuck in the mud hole.
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There was a lot of mud to dig out, which made creating a path for the baby to get out a complicated job. The operator of the excavator had to do his job slowly but surely so that the dirt being removed would not fall back into the hole.
Locals help out
The officials and rescue team knew it was taking too much time. So, they reinforced the help of the locals. They picked out the strongest ones from the crowd to mark the areas where the excavator had to dig. Some people in the crowd volunteered to go back to town and get refreshments for the rescue team. The elephant rescue is now turning into a community project.
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The baby elephant started to move around after seeing all the commotion around him. It was as if he had hope that he would be able to get out of the mud hole. Seeing the baby move around seemed to encourage the herd as well. The herd watched patiently as the excavator did its job.
An unfortunate event
Using the excavator turned out to be a good move. Although it had to be operated slowly, it was the best way to dig out most of the mud and dirt. Doing so by hand would have taken more than a day.
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Suddenly, the noise from the excavator stopped. Everyone turned to look at the excavator. The operator tried to restart the engine but nothing happened. It looked like the rescue team is about to face another problem.
Engine failure
Some of the men checked the excavator and saw that smoke started to come out of it. The engine had overheated. The excavator was being used non-stop for hours. It was an older model so it probably was not able to handle the heavy and demanding task.
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Fortunately, some of the locals in the crowd knew a thing or two about repairing engines. They called the attention of the rescue team to offer their help. Thankfully, all the tools that would be needed to repair the engine were available so the local volunteers started working on the excavator right away.
Taking a break
While waiting for the excavator to be repaired, the volunteers, officials, and rescue teams took the opportunity to rest and take a break. They took this time to eat the snacks and drinks provided by the community.
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Seeing that no one was with the baby elephant anymore, the elephants started screaming again. To calm the herd, some of the rescuers took their break near the baby to show the herd that they were still working on the situation.
Running out of time
Hours had passed but the excavator’s machine was still being fixed. It turned out that this would not be a quick fix as they thought. The volunteers and the herd started to feel impatient.
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The older elephants started to pace and stomp their feet. They were starting to get anxious again. The wildlife officers started to be alert and made sure that the crowd stayed away from the herd.
Back on track
Finally, the mechanics were able to fix the engine and the excavator started running again. The crowd and rescue team cheered upon hearing the machine roar back to life. The elephants stopped their pacing and drew closer.
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By then, the rescue team and local volunteers had enough rest to be re-energized. They got back to their places, eager to go back to work. There was still a lot of digging and forming to do to create the pathway for the baby elephant.
A change of plan
The team tried to do as much as they can. The fix to the excavator was just temporary. They did not want to risk overheating the machine again. Because they had to rush the job, a change of plan had to take place.
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Instead of creating a pathway, they decided to create a trench instead so that they can just push the elephant. It was also for the best since the baby elephant seemed to have no energy left to crawl out of the hole by itself even when a path is made.
The herd becomes impatient
The elephants seem to notice the change of plan and started to feel impatient. The rescue mission was taking too long despite everyone doing their best. The elephants started to scream and stomp around again as if wanting the whole ordeal to be over.
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The rescue team took the hint and tried to double their enthusiasm. The afternoon sun was upon them when the trench was made. It was enough space for the baby elephant to crawl its way out.
A great reunion
The volunteers started to move back to give way to the herd as the baby elephant struggled to stand on its feet. The baby elephant looked weak but it seemed to be determined. Slowly, it used the path and crawled its way back to solid ground.
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As the baby finally was out of the hole, two elephants immediately approached the baby and showed it some affection. You could just tell that they were the baby’s parents. Everyone cheered upon seeing the baby reunited with its parents. Even the elephants in the herd screamed again but this time, the noise they made was not screams of anguish. It had a happier tone to it.
Emotional moment
The rest of the herd surrounded the baby and gave it some loving. The locals were touched by how close the herd was. The baby seemed to be overjoyed by the attention. Some of the rescue team were even in tears, knowing that they had helped make this reunion happen.
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After making sure the baby was okay, it was time for the herd to start moving. None of them had eaten or gotten a drink the whole time the baby was trapped in the mud hole. The massive beasts began to line up to start their procession.
Lesson learned
Everyone watched as the elephants crossed the river. This time, they made sure the unfortunate incident will not happen again. The baby was in between the line, flanked by bigger elephants on all sides. They guided the baby by pushing its behind patiently until it had crossed the river successfully.
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The locals, despite knowing that the rescue was over did not leave their place. They were frozen where they stood as they watch the herd cross the river. It is as if there was a silent agreement to watch the herd until they were out of sight.
An elephant salute
Once the herd had successfully crossed the river, they all turned their heads where the locals watched them as if to say thanks. But what happened next startled the locals. The wild elephants formed a line on their side of the river bank. Then one by one, they raised their trunks.
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Then, they started to make a trumpet sound in a tone that was happier than the ones they have heard before during the reunion. Seeing the wild beasts in a line with their raised trunks was very rare and the crowd was in awe. It was an elephant salute – a priceless moment.
A community united
As the elephant herd continued its way to the forest, the crowd of onlookers started to cheer. The rescue team, volunteers, and officials started to congratulate each other for a job well done. Even the onlookers were hugging each other.
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The wildlife officials gave a short message of thanks to everyone who showed up and helped. Everyone shook hands as they headed back to their homes. They now felt more united, as they have witnessed a very special moment. It was an experience that each one would be telling their kids for many years to come.