New York Times: Late passenger train strikes and kills five elephants in India

HOJAI, India — Indian railways investigators are looking into why a passenger train speeding in the night Saturday struck and killed five elephants.

The Hindustan Times reports that a herd of elephants was crossing the tracks when the Guwahati to Silchar train struck them.

A subsequent report from the New York Times indicates that villagers were trying to warn the train’s engineer by waving flashlights, but that he failed to slow the train in time to avoid a collision. The New York newspaper reports that the passenger train was running late.

The speed limit through the forested area was about 20 mph and forestry officials had alerted railway manager to the herd’s presence earlier in the day.

See the original article online.