A family’s serene holiday in Sri Lanka’s Yala National Park took an unexpected turn when a wild elephant emerged from the foliage and charged at their van.
The elephant, later identified as Nitra, was driven by hunger. She used its tusks to shatter the driver’s window in a startling display of force. The tourists inside were engulfed in panic as the elephant’s trunk invaded the vehicle, rummaging for food. Amidst the chaos, one quick-thinking tourist offered a packet of chips to the elephant, which momentarily distracted the animal.
Kasun Basnayake, an Australian travelling with his family, recounted how he fed the elephant his son’s leftover sandwich on the driver’s advice, believing that this act may have saved their lives. The driver then managed to speed away from the scene.