In Thailand, there was a remarkable incident where a man, who happened to be an off-duty rescue worker, saved a baby elephant’s life by performing CPR on it. It all took place in Chanthaburi province when a group of elephants was crossing the road and unfortunately, one of them got hit by a motorcyclist. The impact threw the rider a few meters away, while the baby elephant remained lying in the middle of the road.
Luckily, a local lifeguard named Mana Srivate was present at the scene. While others focused on assisting the injured motorcyclist, Mana immediately rushed to help the animal. Drawing upon his 26 years of experience as a lifeguard, he began performing chest compressions on the baby elephant, hoping to revive it.
After around 10 minutes of Mana’s efforts, the baby elephant started showing signs of life and eventually managed to stand up. This act of kindness left Mana deeply moved, almost bringing him to tears. Despite his extensive experience as a lifeguard, he had never before been tasked with saving an elephant, and he admitted that his knowledge of elephant anatomy was limited. Nonetheless, he decided to apply his knowledge of human anatomy and an instructional video he had seen online to perform chest compressions on the elephant.
Following the rescue, the baby elephant was taken to veterinarians for a thorough examination. Once they confirmed that the elephant was in good health, they returned the animal to the scene of the accident. Remarkably, the other elephants, upon hearing the cries of the cub, soon returned to join it.
Thankfully, the motorcyclist who collided with the baby elephant didn’t suffer any severe injuries and was also fine.
It’s heartwarming to witness such gestures of empathy towards the animal kingdom, reminding us of the importance of caring for and protecting all creatures we share this planet with.