Elephant kills four members of same Nepal family in 14 years
Four members of the same Nepal family were killed by a rogue elephant over 14 years, even after the family moved away hoping to escape the animal's deadly path.
A rogue elephant killed four members of the same Nepal family over 14 years, even after they fled their village hoping never to cross its path again.
For Shanichara Bote, the nightmare began in December 2012 when a rogue elephant named Dhurbe fatally trampled his parents in Madi, a town near Chitwan National Park in Nepal, Kathmandu Post reports.
Grieving the loss, Bote decided to move his family nearly nine miles away, crossing the Rapti River to settle in Jagatpur in the hope of leaving the danger behind.
For years, the family believed they had escaped. But earlier this month, tragedy struck again.
According to the Kathmandu Post, Dhurbe entered the family's home in Jagatpur and killed Bote's daughter-in-law, Ashika Bote, 25, and his four-year-old grandson, Bharat Bote.
"We believed that moving across the major rivers would keep us safe," Bote told the Kathmandu Post.
"But after all these years, the exact same elephant found us again, raided our home and took my daughter-in-law and my little grandson. There is nowhere left for us to run," he said.
The latest attack means that four members of Bote's family have now been killed by the same elephant over a span of nearly 14 years.
Dhurbe is one of Nepal's most notorious rogue elephants and has been linked to a series of fatal attacks over the years. Officials at Chitwan National Park said that the elephant has now been responsible for 25 confirmed human deaths since 2010.
"Prior to this tragic incident, Dhurbe had officially claimed 23 human lives," Abinash Thapa Magar, a representative of Chitwan National Park, told the Kathmandu Post.
"With these latest two casualties in Jagatpur, the confirmed number of fatalities attributed to this single elephant has now risen to 25," he added.
Dhurbe has a Wikipedia page as well with details of the 25 lives he took.
Wildlife authorities have monitored Dhurbe for years in an effort to reduce the risk of further attacks. The elephant was spotted again in 2016 and was fitted with a tracking collar. After the original collar stopped functioning, a new one was installed in 2020, followed by another replacement in 2023, according to the report.
A rogue elephant killed four members of the same Nepal family over 14 years, even after they fled their village hoping never to cross its path again.
For Shanichara Bote, the nightmare began in December 2012 when a rogue elephant named Dhurbe fatally trampled his parents in Madi, a town near Chitwan National Park in Nepal, Kathmandu Post reports.
Grieving the loss, Bote decided to move his family nearly nine miles away, crossing the Rapti River to settle in Jagatpur in the hope of leaving the danger behind.
For years, the family believed they had escaped. But earlier this month, tragedy struck again.
According to the Kathmandu Post, Dhurbe entered the family's home in Jagatpur and killed Bote's daughter-in-law, Ashika Bote, 25, and his four-year-old grandson, Bharat Bote.
"We believed that moving across the major rivers would keep us safe," Bote told the Kathmandu Post.
"But after all these years, the exact same elephant found us again, raided our home and took my daughter-in-law and my little grandson. There is nowhere left for us to run," he said.
The latest attack means that four members of Bote's family have now been killed by the same elephant over a span of nearly 14 years.
Dhurbe is one of Nepal's most notorious rogue elephants and has been linked to a series of fatal attacks over the years. Officials at Chitwan National Park said that the elephant has now been responsible for 25 confirmed human deaths since 2010.
"Prior to this tragic incident, Dhurbe had officially claimed 23 human lives," Abinash Thapa Magar, a representative of Chitwan National Park, told the Kathmandu Post.
"With these latest two casualties in Jagatpur, the confirmed number of fatalities attributed to this single elephant has now risen to 25," he added.
Dhurbe has a Wikipedia page as well with details of the 25 lives he took.
Wildlife authorities have monitored Dhurbe for years in an effort to reduce the risk of further attacks. The elephant was spotted again in 2016 and was fitted with a tracking collar. After the original collar stopped functioning, a new one was installed in 2020, followed by another replacement in 2023, according to the report.
