Wild Elephants Block Road Stranding Over 100 Vehicles

After a long holiday, many tourists were stranded on the road out of Khao Yai National Park for more than an hour when wild elephants blocked the road.

After a herd of about ten wild elephants began roaming along the road as it was dark, park officials closed the road and refused to allow vehicles carrying tourists to continue their journey out of the park for safety reasons.

For about an hour, the jumbo jam stranded many tourists and more than 100 vehicles. They were allowed to proceed after park officials herded the wild elephants off the road.

Tourist Nathaporn Kwangpimai expressed excitement at photographing Khao Yai’s wild elephants up close.

Ms. Nathaporn stated that the elephants appeared calm and peaceful, showing no sign of aggression. The elephants, in her opinion, had added to the tourists’ excitement.

A video of 50 wild elephants stopping traffic on a highway that crosses an elephant migration route in a wildlife sanctuary went viral globally in April 2020.

The herd of adults and babies was moving from one section of the forest to another. However, the 3076 highway in Chachoengsao Province obstructed their progress.

Unafraid of a sliver of tarmac, the elephants asserted their right of way, leaving a helpless crowd of motorists in awe.

The real-life pachyderm patrol, led by a large matriarch elephant, was unfazed by their jaywalking and crossed in under a minute.

Fortunately, the elephant herd had been tracked by forest rangers all day on April 9. They knew exactly where the elephants—national Thailand’s animals—were going and were able to close the road ahead of time.

Pratya Chutipat Sakul captured the incredible sight by filming the majestic elephants crossing the road and then plunging back into their forest home on the other side of the highway.

The herd was led by a mature female leader who did not appear to be in any hurry. She was trailed by her herd members, who had clustered together, keeping within touching distance of each other and the baby elephants.

Only one elephant halted in the middle of the road, causing a brief “elephant traffic” jam.

Several police officers responded to the scene, located east of Bangkok, Thailand’s capital. They put out traffic cones to keep vehicles from getting too close to the elephants.

Traffic had been halted well before the elephants appeared to avoid accidents or to spook the herd as it emerged from the forest.

A wild elephant was injured after being struck by a pickup on the road in this western border province’s Muang district late Friday night. Both the driver and a passenger were injured.

According to police, the incident occurred on Highway 3199 along the Kanchanaburi – Sri Sawat route in tambon Wang Dong and was reported around 10 p.m. on Friday.

Police and Pithak Kan Foundation rescue volunteers rushed to the scene and discovered a Toyota pickup truck with Bangkok license plates on the road, its front badly damaged.

Panya Thiankrachang, 61, and Chaiya Thiankrachang, 59, the driver, were injured and taken to the hospital. Both men are from the province of Samut Sakhon.

According to police, the pickup struck the elephant as it crossed the road. The driver may have missed signs warning motorists of wild elephants crossing the road, according to police, because the area was quite dark.

The animal fled into the forest after being struck. On the road leading to the forest route, there were blood strains.

Paitoon Intarabut, chief of the Salakphra Wildlife Sanctuary, had directed wildlife sanctuary rangers to locate and treat the injured elephant.

Parks Thailand Reports 27 People Killed Wild Elephants in 2022

Parks Thailand Reports 27 People Killed Wild Elephants in 2022