Train accident claims three elephants
A baby elephant and two female elephants were killed in the wee hours of Saturday in Ambanpola in the Galgamuwa area, having being hit by the Anuradhapura - Colombo passenger train.
The animals had been coming out of the forest patch and were crossing the railway track.
One of the female elephants was believed to be 21/22 months pregnant. Elephants have a 22 months pregnancy.
"The post-mortem is going on and we will receive the final report within a few hours," Director General of the Department of Wildlife Conservation Dr. Chandrawansa Pathiraja said yesterday. "According to our records, two years ago, a similar accident happened, killing elephants on the same track," he said.
According to wildlife officials, the railway track has a steep bend in the forest area that makes it difficult to see what is approaching from both sides. Wildlife officials accompany train drivers during transportation on the Trincomalee - Habarana track.
"We have requested the Railways Department to impose speed limits on railway tracks especially when passing forest patches. We decided to clear the forest patches to a certain extent on such obscure bends on the railway tracks," Dr. Pathiraja said. According to latest statistics, train accidents claim five to six elephants on an average every year.
Source: http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2011/06/19/new23.asp
Three baby elephants killed by train
June 18, 2011, 12:00 pm
June 18, 2011 (AFP) - Three baby elephants were killed when they were hit by a passenger train on Saturday, an official said.
The trio were crossing the tracks in a forested area near Ambanpola, when they were struck by a passenger train bound for the capital, railway general manager Wije Samarasinghe said.
"This is the worst train accident involving elephants," Samarasinghe said. "About two months ago, three elephants were hit by another train in the east of the country and two of them died."
None of the passengers was hurt in the latest incident.
Elephants are considered sacred animals in Sri Lanka, but they increasingly clash with farmers as habitat becomes scarce and are also killed by trains and high-voltage power lines.
At least 100 elephants are killed on the island each year, mostly by farmers, while marauding elephants raiding villages also claim the lives of about 50 people annually.
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