Animal lovers react as tourist-carrier elephant drops dead from exhaustion during work

An investigation has begun into the death of a female elephant which collapsed and died at the roadside while carrying tourists to an ancient Cambodian temple. Sambo the elephant collapsed of a fatal heart attack after ferrying two tourists - one at a time - to a temple in the famous Angkor Wat complex. She had been working for 40 minutes in scorching heat that had reached 40 degrees  - and a veterinarian concluded that she had died of a heart attack ‘due to high temperatures, heat exhaustion and lack of wind that would have helped to cool her.’

Now animal lovers are demanding an investigation as to why the elephant, aged between 40 and 45 years, was forced to continue carrying tourists when the temperatures were so high and there was no wind. Rambo had worked for the Angkor Elephant Company since 2001, said manager Oan Kiri, adding: ‘We’re all very sad to have lost her.’
Briton Jack Highwood, who runs the Elephant Valley Project, designed to protect Cambodia’s elephants, has called for regulated working conditions. He pointed out that the Angkor Elephant Company had 13 remaining animals, which represents the largest concentration of captive elephants in the country.