Wild elephants guard Wayanad landslide survivors till help arrived
A tear-jerking tale of compassion and trust has emerged from the landslide-ravaged Wayanad in Kerala. Sidenote: It involves elephants! The extraorduary tale was shared by Sujatha Aninanchira, who managed to survive a catastrophic landslide with her family in Chooralmala. The roof of their house had collapsed on Monday night following heavy rain, but they managed to crawl out of the rubble and climb a hillock. Once at the hillock, they encountered a tusker and two female elephants mere inches away.
Elephants provide unexpected shelter to landslide survivors
At this time, there was no saying what the elephants would do to them. As luck would have it, the giant animals appeared to comprehend the situation Aninanchira and her family were in. "Just half a meter away from us stood a wild tusker. It too seemed terrified. I mumbled a plea to the elephant, saying we had just survived a disaster and asked it allow us to lie down for the night and let someone rescue us," Aninanchira said.
Elephants stand still, offering silent support to survivors
"We were very close to the tusker's legs, but it seemed to understand our predicament. We stayed there till 6am, and the elephants also stood there till we were rescued by some people in the morning. I could see its eyes welling up as the dawn broke," she recalled. They stayed near the elephants until 6:00am, when they were finally rescued by locals.
Family's harrowing escape from landslide debris
Aninanchira and her family are among the lucky few who managed to escape the devastating landslides that have claimed the lives of over 300 people, while 300 more remain missing. The family, including her daughter Sujitha, husband Kuttan, and grandchildren Sooraj (18) and Mridula (12), is currently at a relief camp in Meppadi GHSS. Aninanchira has worked as a tea picker at the Harrisons Malayalam Tea Estate at Mundakkai for 18 years.
Story of survival resonates, calls for unity emerge
The heartwarming story has now caught the attention of many, including Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, who shared an animation of it on his X account. "Speechless after reading this true story. Gentle giants are gems on our planet Wayanad landslide: Woman, grandchild survive night nestled beneath wild elephant's feet," a user commented. Another use compared the elephants to god. For the uninitiated, elephants are on the top 10 list of the smartest animals in the world.
