Six people and elephant killed in crash in Thailand

Six people have been killed after crashing into an elephant in Thailand.

A vehicle could be seen lying in a ditch after skidding off the road next to the injured wild elephant after hitting the pachyderm at a road in Wang Chan district of Rayong province, on 12 March.

The accident, involving three vehicles and three elephants in south-eastern Thailand, left six people dead, including one Singaporean.

The pile-up occurred around dawn after a ten-wheel truck swerved and braked to avoid hitting three elephants that had wandered on to the road. Four people in the truck died.

Then a pickup truck slammed into the back of the ten-wheeler, killing two people and injuring two others, and a Mitsubishi Pajero swerved to avoid the pickup, crashing in to one of the elephants.

The injured elephant suffered a broken leg and a bloody ear, and later died of its injuries.

According to the Daily Telegraph, the elephants were from the nearby Khao Anglunai Wildlife Reserve, and might have left the reserve in search of food.

According to Reuters, police officer Teerawat Permwattanachaikul in the eastern province of Rayong, said: "The elephant came down from the mountain where there's drought so it was probably searching for food.

"You can't really see elephants at night because their color is so dim."

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