Injured elephant missing
2003-09-22 23:51
Pretoria - The fate of a Zimbabwean elephant, which has wire wrapped around one leg, is at this stage unknown. He was last seen about nine days ago.
The elephant was first spotted about three months ago in the Kariba Dam district. The wire, which had cut into his right front leg, had caused a gaping wound.
Karen Trendler from Wildcare Africa said game rangers had spent the past four days looking for the animal. She said they found the herd on Sunday, but there was no sign of the injured animal.
She said the herd might have moved on, especially if the elephant was dead.
The organisation, meanwhile, was still waiting for permission from the Zimbabwean government to go in and rescue the elephant. Wildcare Africa also needed to establish whether he was still alive, said Trendler.
Game rangers and a tour operator were searching for him, Trendler said.