Gudalur:  A family of three, including a one-and-a-half-year-old baby, had a narrow escape when a wild elephant destroyed the car in which they were travelling on the Gudalur-Sultan Bathery interstate highway.  

The incident happened around 9 am on Wednesday here in Nilgiris. The elephant which had gone violent destroyed the car in which Sunny (60) of Takara Moola at Kallinkara, his wife Mary (52) and son Vipin’s one-and-a-half-year-old child. 

The family was on its way to Nambalakunnu from Pattavayal via Padunthara when they came across the elephant at Nellakotta here.

The elephant rushed towards the car and attacked it, but miraculously the three occupants escaped unharmed. The front and right side besides the doors of the car were completely damaged. Seeing the incident, the locals ran and chased the wild boar. The passengers were brought out safely by breaking the glass. 

The wild elephant entered the town around 8:30 in the morning and reached Nellakotta town by walking along the main road. People scattered at the sight of the jumbo. In the town close to the Kerala border, there are frequent wildfires. Forest guards have reached the area. Following the incident, locals blocked the interstate highway at Nellakotta.