Sri Lanka Train Kills Elephant, Derails Despite Safety Measures

A Sri Lankan express train killed a young wild elephant and was derailed near Habarana, despite safety measures implemented after a similar accident three months earlier killed seven elephants. Following that earlier crash, speed limits were imposed on trains passing through elephant habitats, along with timetable changes and clearing of vegetation to improve visibility for drivers. No passengers were injured in the recent accident, and railway authorities are investigating while working to restore the derailed Colombo–Batticaloa train. Over the past 17 years, 139 elephants have been killed by trains in Sri Lanka, which has about 7,000 wild elephants considered a national treasure due to their cultural significance. The ongoing human-elephant conflict has led to the deaths of 1,195 people and 3,484 elephants over the past decade, with elephants often harmed by poisoning, electrocution, shooting, or explosive-laden fruits. Similar train-elephant collisions also occur in India, which has a larger wild elephant population and has lost about 200 elephants to train accidents in the last decade.