A father and son had a narrow escape after a wild elephant attacked their car on a road near Vadasserikkara town in Ranni and attempted to push the vehicle off the road.

The incident occurred around 1.30 a.m. when the duo, both local residents, were returning home after a hospital visit along the Vadasserikkara-Kumbalathamon road. The elephant, which had been roaming in the area for the last few days, suddenly strayed onto the road and charged at the car. The duo managed to get out of the vehicle and run to safety. The elephant damaged part of the car before retreating into the forest.

“As there was a curve ahead, I could not see the elephant approaching. As soon as it spotted the car, it trumpeted a couple of times before charging at us. It then tried to push the vehicle off the road with its trunk,” said Lijin John, who was driving the car. He added that the consequences could have been far more serious had the car plunged into the gorge nearby.

Forest department officials said the area had been witnessing frequent incursions by wild elephants for some time. Located along the forest fringe, the area is protected by two solar fences, and the elephant is suspected to have entered through a portion of the fencing that had sagged.

Members of the rapid response team and personnel from the Chittar and Thannithodu forest stations secured the area immediately after the incident and have been maintaining a presence there. “The elephant has returned to the forest,” a Forest department official said.

Local residents, meanwhile, said the prospect of wild elephants reaching Vadasserikkara town may no longer be a distant one. They are increasingly afraid to venture outside their homes after dusk, while the presence of elephants in inhabited areas even during the daytime has heightened the sense of insecurity.

“Though the Forest Minister himself visited the area a few weeks ago and issued directions to take measures to prevent wild elephant incursions, no follow-up action has been taken,” a local resident said.

According to her, elephant herds reach inhabited areas by following the riverbanks, sometimes entering the river and wading through the water before crossing to the other side and moving into farmlands. They often clear their way by knocking down the embankments along the river.

Published - August 17, 2026 06:31 pm IST