Over a hundred saved elephants break free during flash floods at renowned sanctuary in northern Thailand.
Video and snapshots from the Elephant Haven Sanctuary situated near Chiang Mai city showed numerous elephants moving through waist-deep water to seek refuge on higher ground.
"This was our largest rescue operation yet to safeguard their lives. The water started to rise rapidly," Saengduean "Lek" Chailert, the founder of Elephant Haven Sanctuary, informed CNN, describing the floods as the most devastating the sanctuary has ever witnessed.
The footage displayed park staff, known as mahouts, who work with elephants, urging them on with cries of "Go go, keep going" as they guided the massive pachyderms out of their enclosures and through the swelling floodwaters.
Despite many animals seeking refuge on a neighboring mountain on Thursday night, Saengduean stated that the danger was far from over on Friday morning.
"There are some animals we couldn't evacuate yesterday. Thirteen grown elephants remain trapped within their quarters. They are frightened," Saengduean indicated.
Northern Thailand has undergone severe flooding and landslides due to heavy rainfall brought on by Typhoon Yagi, Asia's strongest storm this year, which claimed numerous lives as it journeyed across the region in mid-September.
Authorities in Chiang Mai, a popular tourist destination in Thailand, have released warnings about potential flooding due to the Ping River's rising water levels, which flows through the city.
The challenging flooding conditions around the sanctuary and the rising water levels have prompted the sanctuary's founder to anticipate having to evacuate the animals again.
"The situation has significantly deteriorated since yesterday," she indicated, stating that she has appealed for urgent help from Thai authorities.
A priority is procuring boats for the mahouts to stay close to the remaining elephants at the sanctuary, keeping them calm, she added.
"We urgently require volunteers and animal enclosures as we must relocate the animals to the mountains due to the roads being completely impassable in both directions," the sanctuary stated online.
Approximately 30 foreign volunteers are also trapped at the sanctuary, including five Americans, some of whom have been assisting at the park for several weeks, Saengduean mentioned.
Elephants are being evacuated from a sanctuary in northern Thailand amid intense flooding. The Elephant Haven Sanctuary is an elephant rescue and rehabilitation facility in Chiang Mai's countryside that has saved more than 200 elephants from the tourism and logging industries since the 1990s. It also offers tours and volunteering opportunities for visitors to observe the animals or participate in conservation efforts.
Many of the elephants are visually impaired or suffer from physical injuries, which have impeded their ability to flee and complicated the evacuation process.
"Among the evacuated animals, there are numerous sick elephants, some of whom can barely walk. We need all the help we can get," Saengduean said.
In addition to elephants, the sanctuary houses about 5,000 rescued animals, including dogs, cats, horses, pigs, and rabbits – some of which were evacuated lately following flood warnings issued by authorities.
The head of Thailand's Department of National Parks confirmed that numerous officers have been dispatched but have yet to reach the sanctuary due to flooded roads, according to National Broadcasting Television. Atthapol Charoenchansa emphasized the need for flat-bottomed boats and volunteers to aid in evacuating the remaining animals.
Several villages in Chiang Mai's Mae Rim district have been submerged by water from upstream runoffs, local media reported on Thursday.
Elephants, Thailand's national emblem, have experienced a decline in their wild population in recent years due to threats from tourism, logging, hunting, and encroachment onto elephant habitats.
Experts estimate that the wild elephant population in Thailand has decreased to 3,000-4,000, a decrease from over 100,000 at the beginning of the 20th century.
Despite the successful evacuation of many elephants to a nearby mountain, Saengduean expressed concern about thirteen grown elephants still trapped within their quarters at the Elephant Haven Sanctuary. Due to the intense flooding, Saengduean and her team are planning another evacuation, urgently seeking volunteers, boats, and animal enclosures to relocate the creatures to safer ground.
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