Eight elephants were tragically killed early Saturday when a passenger train traveling to Delhi hit a herd in Assam, northeastern India.
As per multiple reports, the train driver saw a herd of about 100 elephants and tried to stop the train by using emergency brakes but the train still hit some of the elephants.
The collision caused the engine and five train coaches to derail but fortunately no people were injured or killed.
This incident happened at around 2:17 am in Hojai district at a location that is not an official elephant corridor, according to local officials.
After the incident, the veterinarians performed autopsies on the elephants that were killed to examine their bodies and the elephants were planned to be burried later the same day.
India’s state-run public radio broadcaster Akashvani said heavy fog in the area may also have contributed to the accident.
The Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) said in a statement, noting, "Trains scheduled to pass through that section are being diverted through another line. Restoration works are on."
The train accidents involving wild elephants are common in Assam which has one of the largest populations of Asiatic elephants in India (around 7,000).
Since 2020, at least 12 elephants have died in such train collisions.
