Department Reports 60+ Elephant Deaths from Rail and Road Accidents Since 2020

According to the Department of Wildlife Conservation, seventy wild elephants have died after being hit by trains and vehicles over the past five years. It further stated that driver negligence is a major cause of these elephant deaths.

Wild elephants have died in accidents that occurred along the railway lines from Colombo to Jaffna and the Eastern Province. The department noted that these railway lines run through national parks and government reserves, and that train drivers failing to pay attention to warning signs placed in frequent elephant-crossing areas has contributed to these collisions.

As of yesterday (the 5th) of this year, 9 wild elephants have died due to train accidents. Over the past 5 years, a total of 60 elephants have been killed in train and vehicle collisions. Of these, 11 deaths occurred in 2024, 24 in 2023, 14 in 2022, 6 in 2021, and 3 in 2020 due to train accidents.

In 2024, 4 wild elephants have died in vehicle-related accidents. In 2020 and 2022, three elephants died each year, and in 2024 and 2021, one elephant died each year due to road accidents.