Three women were killed, and three others sustained injuries in an attack by a herd of four wild elephants in a forest in Odisha’s Dhenkanal district on Tuesday, a senior officer said.
The incident happened near Lochapali village within the Patpuri forest under the Sadar range, according to the senior official.
The group of six women had ventured into the dense forest to collect firewood when they came across the elephants. “The elephants appeared before us without warning and attacked without any provocation,” shared one of the survivors, describing the terrifying moment of the encounter.
While a forest patrol team reached the site quickly and managed to rescue the group, three of the women succumbed to their injuries.
Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Sumit Kumar Kar identified the deceased as Indu Pradhan (60), Tuni Behera (50), and Kuntala Pradhan (40).
The DFO informed that the families of the victims will be provided with ex-gratia compensation in accordance with government provisions.
Rama Dehuri, Rasmita Pradhan, and Jhili Pradhan are undergoing treatment at the district headquarters hospital. Their condition is stated to be normal, he added.
