A logging supervisor in Gua Musang, Kelantan, died on Wednesday after he was trampled by elephants.
Gua Musang police chief Sik Choon Foo said two elephant attacks on a logging area at Felda Aring 8 occurred within several hours, resulting in the death of Saidi Jahari, 43.
He said six workers, including Saidi, were sleeping in tents at about 10pm when they were woken by a loud noise and the strong smell of elephants, and realised a herd was approaching.
“All the workers ran into the forest, but one of them did not manage to escape and was caught by an elephant,” Sinar Harian reported him as saying.
Sik said the workers returned several hours later to find Saidi still alive but severely injured, with both his legs broken.
“They brought the victim into the tent for temporary shelter. However, not long after that, an elephant believed to be the head of the herd returned to attack them again,” he said.
The workers escaped into the forest again, leaving the victim, and returned later after things had calmed down to find him missing from the tent.
“A search found him lying dead on the exit road, with severe injuries believed to be from the elephant trampling him,” he said.
Sik said the body was sent to Gua Musang Hospital for a post-mortem.
The wildlife and national parks department is working to detect and control elephant movement around the logging area.
“Investigations are ongoing and the case has been classified as sudden death. The public is advised not to speculate and to respect the privacy of the victim’s family,” he said.
