MERSING: "I was at home when I received news that my son had been trampled by an elephant. Upon arriving at the scene, I was devastated to confirm it was indeed my son," recalled 65-year-old Yakob Md Yusof.
He said that when he approached his son, Mohamad Syafik Yakob, 31, who worked as a gardener at Sekolah Kebangsaan LKTP Felda Tenggaroh 5, his son was unconscious but managed to open his eyes briefly before closing them again.
"In this morning's incident, my son lost his life after being attacked by a wild elephant while trying to scare it away from behind the school. I received the news at around 11am.
"During the incident, I was informed that my son was chased by the elephant before being tossed during the attack. There were three of them; one managed to escape, while another sustained serious injuries from the elephant," he recounted.
Yakob said that the presence of wild elephants in the village was not new, as such occurrences had happened before.
He said that despite their presence, the elephants had never disturbed the residents, even when passing near their homes.
Accepting the tragedy that befell his youngest son, Yakob said that his son's remains would be buried at the Felda Tenggaroh Timur 1 Islamic Cemetery.
Meanwhile, Alias Atan, the head of Felda Tenggaroh Timur 1, acknowledged that the issue of wild elephants had been ongoing, but this time it tragically resulted in a loss of life.
"When wild elephants enter our village, we always advise residents not to disturb them for fear of their reactions. These wild elephants frequently roam here; this is just one of many. They typically do not bother the residents and usually target oil palm trees and crops. However, incidents like this raise concerns, especially near schools. We hope the relevant authorities can take appropriate action," he said.
As a result of the elephant attack in Felda Tenggaroh 5, Mohamad Syafik suffered injuries to his left neck and chest and tragically died while being transported to Klinik Kesihatan Tenggaroh 2.
In the same incident, another victim sustained head injuries, internal bleeding, and a broken hip and is currently receiving treatment at Hospital Sultan Ismail (HSI).