A tragic incident in Thailand has led to the death of a Spanish tourist, who was gored by an elephant while bathing the animal at an elephant sanctuary.
Blanca Ojanguren García, 22, from Valladolid, was visiting the Koh Yao Elephant Care Centre on the island of Yao Yai when the attack occurred last Friday.
García, a law and international relations student from the University of Navarra, was in Thailand with her boyfriend, who witnessed the fatal attack. The couple was participating in a popular tourist activity where visitors bathe and interact with elephants. During this session, experts believe the elephant became stressed or panicked, likely due to the unnatural interaction with humans outside its typical environment.
The Spanish embassy in Bangkok confirmed García’s death, offering consular support to her family. “We can confirm the tragic death in an accident of a Spanish tourist,” the embassy said. “The Spanish consulate in Bangkok is in contact with the victim’s relatives and offering all the necessary consular assistance, as is normal in these types of circumstances.”
The incident has raised concerns about how elephants are treated in tourist attractions. Bathing elephants has become a popular activity in Thailand, but experts and animal rights groups have warned that it stresses the animals. World Animal Protection has called for an end to the practice, saying elephants used for tourism often suffer from being kept in isolation, chained, or made to do unnatural things.
Thailand’s department of national parks estimates there are over 4,000 wild elephants in the country, but many are kept in captivity for tourism. The department has recorded at least 227 elephant attack deaths over the past 12 years, with 39 fatalities occurring in 2024 alone.
The Koh Yao Elephant Care Centre has defended its practices, claiming it is committed to providing “responsible and ethical interactions with elephants” and does not use hooks or control the animals. However, the incident has raised serious questions about the safety of such tourist experiences.
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