Wild elephant attack in Ramu kills mother and daughter

PNN News Desk, Cox’s Bazar

A tragic incident has occurred in Ramu upazila of Cox’s Bazar where a mother and her young daughter were killed in a wild elephant attack.

The incident took place early Thursday (April 30) morning in the West Khuniyapalong area of Syed Colony under Khuniyapalong Union of the upazila.

The deceased were identified as Chemon Ara (25) and her three-year-old daughter Asma Bibi. They were the wife and daughter of a local resident, Ekram Mia.

According to local sources, around dawn, a herd of three wild elephants entered the residential area. The elephants broke boundary walls of several houses and destroyed nearby trees, causing panic among residents, who began running for safety.

Eyewitnesses said that hearing the noise, Ekram Mia and his family came out of their house. At that time, when the elephant herd charged toward them, he managed to escape with his six-year-old son. However, Chemon Ara and her young daughter Asma Bibi could not escape and were attacked by the elephants and died on the spot.

A local representative of Khuniyapalong Union said the elephant herd was extremely aggressive, causing the situation to quickly go out of control. Later, the elephants damaged nearby fruit trees and moved back toward the nearby hilly forest.

It is learned that the deceased family belonged to the Rohingya community and had been living near the forest area for a long time. Locals alleged that due to food shortages, wild elephant herds are frequently entering residential areas, posing a serious threat to public safety.

After the incident, Bangladesh Police arrived at the scene, completed necessary legal procedures, and handed over the bodies to the relatives. An unnatural death case is being processed.

Meanwhile, local residents have demanded urgent effective measures to reduce human-wildlife conflict.