The rescue took place in torrential rain in the central province of Nakhon Nayok on Wednesday when a one-year-old elephant fell into a drain hole on the side of the road. The distressed mother stood guard over her calf, according to national park staff, but also fell in shortly after being drugged. Mother elephant and calf rescued from drain in Thailand – video Rescuers used a truck-mounted lifting arm to pull the mother out before climbing on top of her to perform simultaneous cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) as an excavator removed earth so the anxious calf could climb out of the slippery mud. The calf began nursing its mother, who soon regained consciousness, and the two were immediately returned to the wild. Rescue workers perform CPR on a mother elephant in Nakhon Nayok province, Thailand. Photo: Taanruuamchon/Reuters It took the team more than three hours to complete the operation. Sky News reported that Dr Chananya Kanchanasarak, Khao Yai National Park Divisional Veterinarian, said: “It was impossible to get close to the baby while the mother was around, so we gave her three doses of tranquilizers, but she went towards her baby before she passed out and hit her head.” An elephant calf stuck in a drainage shaft in Khao Yai National Park, Thailand. Photo: Taanruuamchon/Reuters Chananya said it was “one of the most memorable rescues we’ve done”. Rescuers use an excavator to free an elephant calf after it fell into a well. Photo: Taanruuamchon/Reuters With Reuters
