3 elephants mowed down by a speeding truck in Odisha

Bhubaneswar, Aug 22 (IANS) Three elephants were killed after being hit by a speeding truck on National Highway 20 in Odisha's Keonjhar district early on Thursday, a forest official said.

The incident occurred when the elephants were crossing NH-20 near Balijodi under Ghatagaon forest range in Keonjhar district. The iron ore-laden truck hit them while the elephants were crossing the road. 

Following the mishap, the vehicle skidded off the road and it has been seized. While two elephants were killed on the spot, another pachyderm succumbed to its injuries a few hours later. 

"At around 2 a.m. last night, the mishap occurred when a herd of 10 elephants were crossing the National Highway," said Santosh Joshi, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Keonjhar.