Wild elephant in M'sia suspected to have drowned in river due to severe floods, decomposed carcass found

A fisherman in Malaysia discovered the carcass of a wild elephant floating in the Pahang River on Dec. 1.

Azman Yusof, 54, was casting his fishing net near Lubuk, Kampung Besul at around 6pm when he spotted a large, unfamiliar object drifting in the waters.

Initially, Yusof thought the object might be a piece of log.

"I was travelling on my boat between Kampung Besul and Kampung Pulau Mansok to cast my fishing net when I spotted a huge object floating. I assumed it was a piece of log," Yusof recalled in an interview with The New Straits Times.

However, as he drew closer to investigate, he realised it was no ordinary piece of wood.

The object was much larger than expected and, upon closer inspection, Yusof was shocked to discover it was the lifeless body of a wild elephant.

Elephant suspected to have slipped and drowned in the river

According to Yusof, the elephant's body appeared to have been trapped against a log, and he speculated that the animal may have fallen into the river and drowned, and then swept away by the strong currents.

"When I was about 50m away, it looked like a very big black rock was floating on the river. When I got closer, I realised it was the body of a wild elephant that seemed to have drowned," he explained to another Malaysian newspaper, Kosmo!

With many logs and debris floating along the river, he was hesitant to intervene, adding that he "decided to leave the carcass in the river".

Viral video of elephant carcass

A video of the elephant carcass discovered by Yusof has circulated online, garnering over 200,000 views.

The footage showed a close-up of the elephant lying on its side, with one part of its face barely above the water.

The body is wedged against a decaying log and covered in mud and sand.

1.12.2024

Penduduk kampung menjumpai bangkai gajah terapung di sungai Pahang berhampiran Pulau Mansok, Jerantut.

Kredit: Wan Muzaidey pic.twitter.com/Pi0h3p9Zr1

— 🇲🇾Bencana2024🇲🇾 (@bencanamalaysia) December 2, 2024

Many commenters expressed their sorrow over the plight of the elephants affected by the recent flooding.

Not the only place elephants are affected

Elephants were also affected by the recent severe flooding in Thailand.

In October, flash floods swept through the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, a popular elephant rescue and rehabilitation centre housing 126 elephants, causing 30 elephants to go missing.

Two elephants belonging to the park were found dead on Oct. 3 in the Mae Taeng district of Northern Thailand.

Top images from bencanamalaysia/X