RANGOON — Seven people were stomped to death by an elephant in northern Shan State’s Mongmit Township on Sunday night, according a Lower House lawmaker from the township.
Parliamentarian U Toe Thaung told The Irrawaddy on Monday that the elephant destroyed a house in Sint Kin village while the people inside were sleeping.
“The family woke up, got scared, and ran. The elephant followed, attacking them and stomping on them,” he said.
He added that the elephant’s owner had also been killed by the animal as he followed it to the village and tried to subdue it.
The elephant had been used it for logging in the area, but was in “musth,” a period of time when male elephants experience a rise in reproductive hormones such as testosterone. Normally when a domestic elephant is in musth, its owner must take extra precautions to keep it restrained, as the animal may become violent.
“No rope was used to tie up the elephant when it came to kill the family,” said U Toe Thaung.
“Six people were killed at once, including a 7-year-old boy, and another wounded person died on the way to the hospital,” he explained, adding that the victims included four men, two women, and the boy.
After the encounter, locals killed the elephant.
