The bodies of at least two elephants have been found by the lakes in Dak Lak Province with heat and drought, being suspected as the main suspect.

Decomposing body of an elephant

A local found the body of an elephant near Ea Sup Thuong Lake on April 13 while he was walking home. Huynh Trung Luan, director of Dak Lak Elephant Conservation Centre, confirmed the news. According to Luan, the body was decomposing and only a head and a leg remained intact.

Because of the heat and drought, the elephants are being forced to find other sources of water and many have been flocking to Ea Sup Thuong Lake. It is suspected that the elephant walked into a small swamp and couldn't get out.

Two dead elephants found in two months

On March 28, an two-year-old elephant fell into a well inside Cu M’Lan Forestry Company while trying to drink water. Even though the elephant was rescued, other elephants refused to let him return to the herd as he carried the scent of his human rescuers.

On February 17, the body of another elephant, around one year old, was found by a lake belong to the fields in Village 2, Ea Kiet Commune. The autopsy showed that the elephant had tragically somehow died from drowning.