Endangered Wild Elephant in Cambodia Electrocuted to Death

An endangered wild elephant in Cambodia has reportedly died after it was electrocuted by an electrical pole.

Associated Press stated that Nup Thet, a ranger at Wildlife Alliance reported the incident. He said, the elephant, which is about 3 tons, was found lying in the jungle near Cardamom National Park.

According to Cambodia Daily, Eath Virak, chief of police in Kompong Seila district's O'bakrotes commune, said the endangered elephant was likely killed after trying to walk through the voltage-powered line.

"At midnight, there was a sound of an elephant wailing...and also an electricity blackout," he said.
The elephant, which is identified as a male pachyderm, was found with burns on its feet, thigh and head, Phnom Penh Post reported.

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Kong Kimsreng, director of Natural Protected Area in the southern part ofthe Tonle Sap lake, said the elephant leaned against the electricity pole. Its body weight caused the pole to fall down.

"It might have been angry because the area was a jungle in the past, but later the people transformed the area into farms," Kimsreng added.

A funeral will be arranged for the unfortunate elephant and it will be buried at Tamao Mountain. It will be a representation of how important it is to take care of wildlife and the environment that they are depending with, he said.

Meanwhile, the elephant's bones will be further studied and be displayed in an exhibition.

The dead elephant is believed to be one of the five of its kind left in the area. They were allegedly displaced as jungles were converted to farmlands.

Asian elephants in Cambodia are listed as endangered. In Cambodia, they are primarily found in the mountains of the southwest and in Mondulkiri and Ratanakiri Provinces.

A study, conducted by Asian Elephant Specialist Group (AsESG), noted that since the 1990s, capturing of wild elephants has been illegal. In particular, the Asian elephant is protected under Cambodian law. Previous estimates of the elephant population of Cambodia range from 250 to 600.