Top 10 rules to avoid an elephant squishing your car

PHOTO: Khaosod English

After the video of a bull elephant sitting on a car whilst it was trying to drive through Khao Yai National Park in Nakhon Ratchasima went viral, officials have come up with 10 rules to follow when confronted by a wild elephant who has an unnatural attraction to your car.

The 35 year old tusked elephant, Duea, was standing beside a car parked on the main road through the park in Pak Chong district on Tuesday. The elephant then started leaning on the car before straddling the rear of the vehicle and lowering its weight. The panicked driver drove away after the car was already damaged.

Park director Kanchit Sarinpawan says that Duea usually likes to come to greet tourists anyway, but he never hurt anyone or any vehicles.

“There were many factors that contributed to this, as we can see in the clip. We can see the drivers were able to drive out, but they may have been too panicked.”

The elephant dented the roof and broke the rear and side windows. The driver and passenger were shaken but not injured.

The following are the 10 rules tourists driving through the park should follow when encountering a wild elephant…

• Stay at least 30 metres away in your car and slowly back up to keep your distance if the elephant approaches.
• No flash photography.
• Do not honk the car’s horn or make other loud noises.
• Do not turn off the engine and be ready to drive away at any time.
• Do not get out of the vehicle to take photos.
• Turn off your headlights if encountering elephants at night. Do not flash headlights or other lights at them.
• If surrounded by elephants circling your car, move towards a spot in the circle with no elephants.
• If the car in front of you backs up, please back up as well, as it might be an emergency situation.
• Do not get out of the car and approach the elephant.
• An elephant’s best senses are hearing, smell, and vision. If you turn off your engine, the elephant will approach and use these senses to investigate, by looking at, smelling, and listening to your car.

SOURCE: Khaosod English