Heartbreaking moment mother elephant stays by dead calf after fatal road collision in Mersing (VIDEO)

KUALA LUMPUR, July 1 — An adult elephant believed to be the mother of a calf killed in a pre-dawn road collision remained at the crash site in Johor this morning, staying nearby until wildlife officers completed an operation to bury the young elephant and return it safely to the jungle.

According to New Straits Times, the elephant calf was struck by a car along Jalan Felda Nitar near Kampung Pengkalan Bukit Asli, in Mersing.

An adult elephant lingered at the scene, disrupting traffic as rescuers and wildlife personnel responded.

Johor Health and Environment Committee chairman Ling Tian Soon said the Johor Elephant Action Unit was deployed to manage the situation and ensure public safety.

He said the calf was later buried, while the adult elephant was fitted with a monitoring collar before being released back into the jungle.

“The operation has been completed and the situation is now under control,” he said.

A firefighter at the scene told the newspaper that the calf died from its injuries.

The collision also left a 31-year-old motorist injured after his car struck the calf before veering off the road and plunging about five metres into a ravine.

Mersing Fire and Rescue station chief Mohd Alias Hussin said the department received an emergency call at 2.28am, with nine firefighters arriving at the scene, about 27km from the station, at 3.03am.

“The victim was travelling towards Felda Nitar in Kahang, Kluang, when his car hit the calf before veering off the road and plunging into a ravine,” he said.

The driver became trapped inside the wreckage and was rescued by firefighters before being taken to Mersing Hospital with leg injuries.