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Screenshot via Times of India
An elephant was tranquilized and isolated in India after charging into a crowd during the annual Ratha Yatra celebrations in India.
Video posted by Times of India shows one of multiple elephants, painted for the Khadia festival, charging into a crowd and running as people try to calm him. The elephant was the only male taking part in the celebration out of 18 pachyderms.
“Two female elephants were used to gently herd him away from the crowd, in line with our standard safety strategy,” RK Sahu, superintendent of the Kamla Nehru Zoological Garden, told the Times of India.
The animal was tranquilized and no serious injuries were reported.
The elephant broke free of his handlers after seemingly becoming spooked and charged into the crowd before running into a railing. The video then shows him running down the street. People rushed to help those trampled by the animal.
The celebration continued with the 17 other elephants after things were brought under control.
The annual Ratha Yatra is also known as the Festival of Chariots, where the deities Lord Jagannātha, Lord Baladeva, and Devi Subhadrā are taken in separate chariots from the Jagannatha Temple to the Gundicā Temple.