MAN KILLED IN ELEPHANT ATTACK IN GUA MUSANG

GUA MUSANG, Oct 31 (Bernama) -- A 43-year-old local man was found dead after being attacked by a herd of wild elephants near a logging workers’ quarters in Aring 8, late Wednesday night.

Gua Musang police chief Supt Sik Choon Foo said in a statement today, police received an initial report on the incident from the Paloh 2 police station at 8.15 am yesterday.

He said preliminary investigations found that six logging workers, including the victim Saidi Jahari, were asleep in the quarters when they were startled by loud noises.

“They saw a herd of wild elephants approaching and ran into the forest to escape. Unfortunately, the victim could not get away and was attacked by one of the elephants,” he said.

Sik said the workers returned to the quarters a few hours later and found the victim with serious injuries, including fractures to both legs, and carried him inside. However, they were forced to leave him behind when an elephant, believed to be the herd’s leader, returned to the area.

Sik said the body was sent to Gua Musang Hospital for a post-mortem, and the case has been classified as a sudden death.

He said the Department of Wildlife and National Parks has been notified, and efforts are underway to track and manage the herd's movements.

Meanwhile, the victim’s brother, Sulaiman Jahari, 32, said they learned of the incident at 10 am yesterday. He added that Saidi had only started working in the logging area about two weeks ago.

“The incident is a huge shock to our family. The last time I saw him was during Deepavali. He never spoke about the challenges of working in the forest or the threat posed by wild animals,” he said.

Sulaiman added that his brother was experienced in such work and had previously worked in Tanah Tinggi Lojing.

-- BERNAMA