Veterinarians and zoo staff in Thailand carried out a rescue operation for a pair of elephants, which required the use of a crane, an excavator and resuscitation equipment.
The rescue operation took place amid torrential rains in the central province of Nakhon Nayok on Wednesday, after a one-year-old elephant fell into a drainage hole.
After a terrified mother tried to save her child, she too soon fell into the same hole.
“It was impossible to save the baby and the mother close in a small area of the hole, so we gave her three doses of sedatives,” said veterinarian Dr. Khao Yi, as quoted by the British “Sky News” network.
Rescuers used a truck-mounted crane to pull the mother out, and she was given resuscitation on site.
Three hours later, the rescue team managed to get the baby elephant out of the hole.