PAK CHONG — A pickup truck carrying ice collided with a wild elephant near Khao Yai National Park early Saturday, seriously injuring the driver, police said.
The crash occurred before dawn on Jan. 4, 2026, on a rural highway along the boundary of Khao Yai National Park near a hotel in the Heo Pla Kang area of Moo Si subdistrict, Pak Chong district, in Nakhon Ratchasima province, said police Lt. Col. Saharat Suphannahphasat of Moo Si police station.
Officers and rescue volunteers found a box-style pickup truck heavily damaged at the front, with debris scattered across the road. The driver, identified as Suriya Lertrittha, 63, was trapped inside the vehicle with severe head injuries and heavy bleeding. Rescue workers freed him and rushed him to Bangkok Hospital–Khao Yai for treatment.
The elephant fled into the forest after the collision and had not been located, police said. The damaged truck was taken to Moo Si police station for further examination.
Police said preliminary information from local residents indicated the truck was travelling from the Thanarat Road intersection in Kut Khla village toward Klang Dong when the elephant likely crossed the road while returning to the park after foraging overnight. The driver may not have seen the animal in low light, leading to the crash.
The road runs alongside the boundary of Khao Yai National Park, where vehicle collisions with wild elephants have occurred before. Police noted that a similar incident several years ago resulted in a driver’s death.
Khao Yai National Park chief Chaiya Huaihongthong said park officials had been instructed to search the area to assess whether the elephant was injured. As of Saturday morning, the animal had not been found.
