Northeast Thailand villages ravaged by wild elephants: Urgent action plea

Agricultural communities in Loei, a province in northeast Thailand, are grappling with the daunting invasion of wild elephants from the Phu Luang Wildlife Reserve. The elephants have devoured crops almost entirely in some fields, leading to an earnest plea to the relevant government agencies for an urgent resolution.

The impacted residents mainly inhabit 11 villages in Phu Kradueng and Huai Som districts. They are witnessing the intrusion of the wild elephants emerging from the wildlife reserve which is home to more than 30 of these giant beasts.

Every night the elephants venture out in search of food, causing severe damage by consuming and trampling over a vast quantity of crops. Sometimes they enter the villages, leaving the villagers in fear. The villagers say they can’t claim compensation for the destruction of their crops and possessions, blaming government agencies for failing to address the issue adequately.

One of the villagers from Huai Pai village, Huai Som sub-district, Phu Kradueng district, recounted his plight. He lamented the now-daily trouble caused by the elephants ravaging the crops. On one particular night, seven elephants invaded his land causing significant damage to his banana and cassava plantations alongside other crops, almost wiping out his entire field. He also complained about the similar level of destruction caused by the elephants in the fields of his neighbouring farmers.

The villagers live in fear as the elephants appear even during the day thus preventing them from working in their fields. They are appealing to the relevant agencies to help them find a way out of this predicament, reported KhaoSod.

District Officer Phu Kradueng disclosed that the problem of elephants residing in the area originates from an autonomous herd of approximately 30 elephants. He stated that the issue is exacerbated during the rainy season, with frequent rainfall encouraging some elephants to escape the confines of the Phu Khor Phu Kra Tae wildlife reserve. However, the current problem involves a subset of the elephant group branching off to form new herds. This includes Ban Na Paen, where two young elephants have formed their new herd. There are also around seven elephants in the Huai Som sub-district, which have formed smaller herds infiltrating each village, some with two, and some with four.

The local officers charged with monitoring and tracking the wild elephants have been divided into two teams, who work from around 5pm to 6pm to watch for the elephants exiting the jungle. Their duty involves driving the elephants back into the jungle to prevent them from disrupting the agricultural areas of the villagers. Yet, the clever elephants manage to evade the officers’ watchful eyes, causing damage to the villagers’ agricultural fields.

Unfortunately, unlike in other disaster situations, aid and disaster declarations are difficult to implement as the elephant issue is not a continuous, easily assessed damage event.

“Although a disaster has been declared, we still cannot fully help the affected people. Many agencies try to find ways to help these villagers every day. However, for now, we can only push them (the elephants) out of these areas,” said the Phu Kradueng District Officer.