Elephant runs amok before pageant begins

By Maneshka Borham

One woman died and 11 others were injured when an elephant which was being prepared for the final Perahera at the Ratnapura Maha Saman Devalaya became aggressive and attacked the crowds on Friday. J. Leelawathi, (60) of Uda Niriella was pronounced dead on admission to hospital.

According to the Police Media Unit, she was a heart patient, suffering from hypertension. “The victim had died due to a heart attack and not due to being attacked by the elephant,” a Police source confirmed. In addition, 12 spectators were rushed to hospital due to injuries sustained while attempting to escape from the path of the rampaging elephant.

According to Police, the incident had occurred around 10.50 pm on Friday, when the elephant had become aggressive shortly before the Perahera commenced, and run amok, with the mahouts unable to control it.

The postmortem of the deceased woman took place yesterday. Ratnapura Police are carrying out further investigations. The issue has once again drawn the ire of animal rights activists who claim, such incidents bring into question the use of elephants in cultural events, in Sri Lanka.