“It first pushed the car back, then lifted it up and slammed it down…” said Sangeetha from Mundakkal House near Gandhi Nagar Main Street in Thrissur, her voice trembling with fear. Though still in shock, she feels like she has been given a second life.

The incident happened around 9.30 am when Sangeetha was leaving for office in her car. Just outside her house, she suddenly came face-to-face with the rogue elephant. Sangeetha was in the driver’s seat when the tusker lifted the car with its tusks and threw it on the ground. She managed to escape from the wrecked vehicle with the help of local residents. She escaped without injuries. By then, the elephant had returned towards the car for a second attack.

A jumbo ran amok in a residential area in Thrissur city on Saturday morning, destroying vehicles and properties, creating panic among the people. The elephant suddenly got agitated while returning from a temple and ran a couple of kilometres through the city. It overturned or damaged vehicles in its path, damaged the walls of some houses and trees as it moved around in the colony.

Sangeetha works at a financial institution called Jewel Rock in Kizhakkumpattukara. She said she first heard people shouting about the elephant as she reached the curve near her house. Initially, she could not understand what they were saying. Once she realised the danger, she tried reversing the car, but could not move back quickly because of the narrow bend. Adding to her panic, her daughter Sruthi was coming behind her on a two-wheeler. Sangeetha was worried her daughter might unknowingly come forward towards the elephant. While trying to warn her daughter, she failed to notice that the elephant had already reached the front of the car.

The elephant first pushed the vehicle backward and then lifted it using both tusks before smashing it onto the road, Sangeetha recalled. After that, the animal moved away briefly. Since the car had tilted to one side, she could not open the driver’s side door. Local residents then pulled her out through the opposite door.

Moments later, the elephant returned through the same route and attacked the car again. It thrust its tusk beneath the seat area and tried to overturn the vehicle. However, the car got stuck between nearby walls, preventing it from flipping over.

Later, Minister OJ Janeesh visited the spot and spoke to Sangeetha about the incident.