Trapped Calf, Mother Elephant Saved From Manhole In Dramatic Rescue [Watch]

In a dramatic rescue caught on camera, a distressed elephant and her stranded calf were saved from a drainage hole.

The one-year-old calf fell into a roadside sewage pit in Thailand's Nakhon Nayok province on Wednesday. A passerby noticed the baby elephant and immediately informed the wildlife officials and Khao Yai National Park authorities, prompting a swift rescue despite the heavy downpour, Reuters reported.

According to park officials, the distraught mother was not allowing anyone to reach out to the calf stuck in the hole. She was standing guard, which made it difficult for rescuers to help the calf.

She was then tranquilized but hit her head on a concrete surface and shortly after, fell into the hole herself, requiring the assistance of a truck-mounted boom lift to be extracted.

A veterinarian and national park staff in Thailand gave cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to the mother elephant to revive her by gently hopping on top of her.

In the video, uploaded by Thairath News, rescuers can be seen panicking but at the same time promptly responding to save the lives of both mother and calf.

A digger is seen helping the calf climb out of the 7 feet-deep slippery hole by clearing the ground. It took nearly three hours for the team to complete the rescue operation.

The calf sought comfort in its mother and began suckling her. The mother regained consciousness and the two made their way back to the wild, The Guardian reported.

"It was impossible to get near the baby while the mother was nearby so we gave her three doses of tranquilizers but she moved towards her baby before passing out and hit her head.” Khao Yai National Park Department veterinarian, Dr. Chananya Kanchanasarak said, adding the experience had touched their hearts, as per Sky News.

In a similar story of animals being rescued by humans despite the obstacles, authorities in Ukraine rescued a puppy that was stuck under a destroyed building in April. The canine was later reunited with its owner who survived the Russian shelling at the time.