Three wild elephants rescued after falling into Maduru Oya

A herd of three wild elephants that fell into the ZD Main Canal in Maduru Oya in the early hours of yesterday morning were rescued and released into the Dambagaha Ulpatha Forest Reserve by wildlife officers from the Pimburaththewa Range Wildlife Office.

One of the jumbos managed to find its way out through a flight of steps leading to the canal bank and fled into the forest reserve. However, the other two, which had run into difficulty, were rescued by wildlife officers.

Assistant Wildlife Ranger S. A. Wickremeratne said the herd, which frequently visited Veheragama village, would have fallen into the canal as it was brimming due to heavy rain and had been carried a distance of about one kilometre.

Pic by Nimal Jayaratne