Villagers in India have been left fearing for their lives and sleeping on rooftops as an aggressive wild elephant that has k!lled 22 people remains on the loose
Residents of the West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand are being forced to leave their homes and retreat to above-ground spots for safety as the one-tusked, young male elephant continues to run through the area on a violent rampage, smashing walls and leaving destruction in its wake.
Believed to be in its mating phase known as musth, elephants often exhibit intense s3xual libido and aggression during this period of time, which is known to last as long as 20 days.
The huge creature, which began its frenzied attack on the first day of the year has now tragically claimed the lives of over 20 people, including four children and an eight month old baby.
Authorities in India have deployed at least 80 forest officers who are now attempting to corner the creature and use tranquillisers to subdue it.
While the majority of villagers are hiding out in fear and doing all they can to avoid crossing paths with the elephant, a small group of villagers have also reportedly joined in the hunt to bring the rampage to an end before more lives are claimed.
Aditya Narayan, a division forest officer of the Chaibasa district, explained that while it is rare for elephants in their mating phase to attack humans in such a way, this elephants behavior has been particularly surprising.
He said: “Anyone who came in front of it was trampled. In one family alone four people were killed. It is unprecedented.
“We have seen elephants in musth in the past, but they’d rarely harm people,” he added.
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