Elephant calf rescued from 30-feet-deep well in the Nilgiris

Tamil Nadu Forest Department rescues elephant calf from deep well in Kurinchi Nagar, reunites with herd.

After an eight-hour-long operation, the Tamil Nadu Forest Department rescued an elephant calf that had fallen into an almost 30-feet-deep well in Kurinchi Nagar in Kollapalli, Pandalur on Wednesday, May 29, 2024.

The calf, aged around 4-years-old, is believed to have fallen into the well in the early hours of Wednesday. The owner of the land, on whose property the open well was located, had informed the forest department about the presence of a herd of elephants, comprising the calf and at least three others when he heard the sounds of the animals in distress.

The herd refused to leave the side of the calf and had to be chased away by forest department staff to ensure the safety of the team of rescuers.

The forest department used two earth excavators to dig a route into the well, expanding the escape route and also making a ramp for the elephant calf to walk up. Following the operation, the elephant calf was rescued by the forest department, who had deputed over 70 personnel to assist in the rescue operations.

They had also posted teams to keep tabs on the rest of the herd, so that the calf could be quickly reunited following the rescue. District Forest Officer, D. Vengatesh Prabhu oversaw the entire operation.

After the calf was extricated from the well, it was assessed for injuries by the forest department. It was then allowed to rejoin its herd.

Supriya Sahu, Additional Chief Secretary, Environment, Climate Change and Forests to the government of Tamil Nadu, put out a tweet on ‘X’ (formerly known as Twitter) stating, “A very heartening news is coming in just now about the successful rescue and reunion of a juvenile elephant in Tamil Nadu... Gudalur forest forest division in Nilgiris have successfully rescued a juvenile elephant from a 30-feet-deep sand well in a farmland where the young elephant had accidentally fallen,” wrote Ms. Sahu, going onto appreciate the Gudalur District Forest Officer for his efforts.