Swept away 55km by a raging river, jumbo survives extraordinary flood ordeal

Dibrugarh: For nearly 55 km, she was at the mercy of a swollen river that carried her from the hills of Nagaland, through turbulent floodwaters and rocky terrain, and hurled her downstream in the floodplains of Assam.Every kilometre underlined the violence of the floods — churning water, powerful currents and rough terrain that stood between her and survival. But she finally washed ashore at Bihubor in Sivasagar on Thursday, with an injured leg and exhausted. From there, she trekked to Balighat in Simaluguri.This is the extraordinary survival story of a 53-year-old domesticated female elephant that was swept away from Namsang in Nagaland after a cloudburst and days of relentless rainfall caused the Dikhow river to swell dramatically.At present, she is resting under close observation of veterinary personnel. A team from the Nazira veterinary dispensary is attending to her.State minister Bimal Borah, who has been overseeing flood-relief operations in Sivasagar, said, “A heartening moment amid the floods. A 53-year-old female elephant swept away by the Dikhow River from Namsang, Nagaland, has been safely rescued after reaching Sivasagar, Assam. Veterinary teams are providing round-the-clock medical care, and the animal’s condition is being closely monitored,” Borah said.The extraordinary ordeal also revealed the sheer power of the floods battering the Assam-Nagaland border region. If the Dikhow could carry an elephant weighing several tonnes from the Nagaland hills to the Assam plains, its impact on settlements along the river’s course was not difficult to imagine.Across Sivasagar district, floodwaters have inundated large areas, including Chontok, Bihubor, Nazira, Simaluguri, Jhanji and Jamuguri. The Dikhow, Disang and Dorika rivers have flowed well above danger levels, forcing thousands of residents to leave their homes and take shelter in relief camps.Teams from the State Disaster Response Force, National Disaster Response Force and the Indian Army have been deployed for large-scale rescue and evacuation operations.