Young elephant dies in fatal electrocution
The Nation



PHETCHABURI: -- A seven-year-old wild elephant in Phetchaburi's Kaeng Krachan National Park was fatally electrocuted by an oil palm plantation's 220-voltage electric fence yesterday.

The incident prompted provincial governor Monthien Thongnit to inspect the scene. He criticised the type of fencing used, saying that it was unnecessary. Petchaburi province has campaigned for elephant conservation and substantial funding has been channelled into taking care of the park’s elephants and reducing conflicts between the pachyderms and farmers.

Following the 9 am report of the electrocution at Ban Pa Ka Yor in Tambon Pa Teng of Kaeng Krachan district, police rushed to the scene and found the carcass of a male elephant entangled in the fence. The electric fence - erected to prevent elephants to eating the palms in the 25-rai plantation - belonged to Nareunart Ketrat, 50, who admitted to setting up the fence.

Previously, two cows belonging to a neighbour were also reportedly electrocuted near the same spot.

The fence is within the Pa Yang Nam Klad Neu-Tai Forest Reserve, which farmers repeatedly encroached upon. However, legal action against encroachment in the area has not been pursued pending the "right-over-land" identification in accordance with a Cabinet resolution.

Despite the resolution prohibiting encroachers from re-selling the land, Nareunart told police that he had recently bought the plot to grow oil palm - a story that was confirmed by a village headman, who acted as a witness to the Bt1.5 million land purchase.

Nareunart was initially charged with violations of the Wildlife Protection Act 1992 as well as encroaching on the forest reserve.


-- The Nation 2013-06-14

that is an incredibly sad photo/news story...

To paraphrase Cecil Rhodes.... "to be born a Thai elephant is a bitch."

Is sad to hear and see animals died this way..the owner knew that electric fence can kill and let it be

Worse than erecting the electric fence is the encroachment on illegally occupied reserve land. Nothing was done about that. The encroacher should be hauled off in cuffs, photographed and reenacted for photo ops with the prosecutors. Hauling them off, charging them, jail terms and fines are the only way that this encroachment with impunity will stop.

For his punishment, give him 3 minutes holding HIS fence with the power on.

The only 2 things that are infinite are the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the universe - apologies to Einstein if I mangled it.

Put your man hood on the line. Who the hell needs an electric fence? Typical Retard.

What a sick bastard. Why 220 to scare animals away? 12 or 24 V would do with high level milli amperes. If you put 220 you deliberately want to kill.

What a sick bastard. Why 220 to scare animals away? 12 or 24 V would do with high level milli amperes. If you put 220 you deliberately want to kill.

Nah, just your typical mongoloid. Guy doesn't know shit about voltage and amperes (nor did the the poor elephant).

Another manifestation of that unique blend of ignorance, greed and malice, which is so often found in these parts.

What a sick bastard. Why 220 to scare animals away? 12 or 24 V would do with high level milli amperes. If you put 220 you deliberately want to kill.

Nah, just your typical mongoloid. Guy doesn't know shit about voltage and amperes (nor did the the poor elephant).

seems neither do the two of you, you can't increase the current without increasing the voltage and it's the current that kills I=V/R . that's why RCD devices are designed to trip at about 20mA ( although they state 40mA on them). normal cattle fences are high voltage but don't have enough power to supply any current when an animal touches it, micro amps, so the animal just gets a shock although a high enough voltage will disrupt your body control same as a tazer does.

Given the prevalence of proper electric fences, I find it somewhat surprising that 220 was used, since that implies a proximity to mains as opposed to batteries.

Is it passé to observe that 'electrocution' by definition is always fatal?

What a sick bastard. Why 220 to scare animals away? 12 or 24 V would do with high level milli amperes. If you put 220 you deliberately want to kill.

I'm sorry but the skin resistance of the beast precludes the use of low voltage.

... and anyway as the (accurate) saying goes "It's the volts that jolts, and the mills that kills!" 70 mA passing through the human heart can cause fibrillation and possible death, so 'high level milli amperes' certainly isn't the way to go.

Commercial electric fences, in the UK, generally use 30 KV or more, generated from a 12V battery and a car ignition coil, but current limited with high value resistors. It stings (bl**dy well does I can assure you!) but it doesn't kill.

I must assume from the voltage used that Khun Nareunart just plugged into his domestic electricity supply. Could have been fatal to him or a member of his family. he is a lucky man.

RIP Chiang Noi

Another manifestation of that unique blend of ignorance, greed and malice, which is so often found in these parts.

check your history: look in the west, in your own country wherever u come from. whatever thailand is doing anno 2013 has already been done by other countries years ago. they are not more ignorant, greedy or evil than other countries, they are just a couple of decades behind.

seems neither do the two of you, you can't increase the current without increasing the voltage and it's the current that kills I=V/R .

true i know shit about it, never said i did, but then i don't build fences (except around my heart) ;-)

..... but then i don't build fences (except around my heart) ;-)

Awwwwwwwww sad sad

Another manifestation of that unique blend of ignorance, greed and malice, which is so often found in these parts.

check your history: look in the west, in your own country wherever u come from. whatever thailand is doing anno 2013 has already been done by other countries years ago. they are not more ignorant, greedy or evil than other countries, they are just a couple of decades behind.

Where in my post did I state that people here are more ignorant, greedy or evil? It's the combination that I find peculiar and characteristic.

It's what gives these incidents that "they'll never believe this stuff back home" quality.

No need for high voltage in an electric fence.

They have been in operation in NZ for over 50 years at around 12 volts and that gives quite a jolt but does no harm

If I understand correctly elephants are intelligent creatures and tend to explore unknown things with their trunks not just blunder into them.

A whack on the trunk would soon tell them to keep away.

Even if they did get caught in one there would be no permanent damage to anything but the fence.

I suspect this fella just connected a couple of wires up to the mains power as the simplest and cheapest way to do things.

"Boooohoooohooo....the elephant is the symbol of our nation...we need to protect it, it is sooo precious to us and...what? ...there are a few 1000 baht in this for me? Where is my gun, I'll kill that beast!"

Yes obviously clueless about how to correctly install an electric fence for elephants. Maybe a trip to a zoo, talking to the elephant keeper, and he would have seen how it should be done.

Why the hell would you put up a fence with 220V??? It's totally over the top! What happens if a kid or a person walks into it? That guy is insane and needs to do some jail time!!!

the elephant was fatally electrocuted. As Jack Nicholson once said " is there any other kind."

No need for high voltage in an electric fence.

They have been in operation in NZ for over 50 years at around 12 volts and that gives quite a jolt but does no harm

WRONG On two counts -

1. there is a need for high voltage due to the resistance of the person/beast coming into contact with the fence
2. 12 volts does not give a jolt

I am sorry but the fence is at high voltage, electronic or - in the past - electromechanical circuitry transforms the 12V from the battery to a high voltage of 30KV or more using a step-up transformer or car ignition coil. High value resistors in the megohm range keep the current to safe levels for man and beast.

To prove the point, go out to your car, raise the bonnet (hood????) and with wet hands touch the 12V battery terminals. Nothing!! Even with wet hands.

Now (IF you have resistive leads) .pull off a plug cap while the engine is running. THAT will "bite" you, NOT 12 volts directly from the battery.

Perhaps electricity on NZ farms defies all the Laws of Physics and in particular the Law propounded by the erstwhile Herr Georg Simon Ohm.

To paraphrase Cecil Rhodes.... "to be born a Thai elephant is a bitch."

Not so much a paraphrase as a mangle of an all too typical English-centric & decidedly irrational world view.

“To be born an Englishman,” Cecil Rhodes once claimed, “is to win first prize in the lottery of life.”

The winning Rhodes lottery ticket:

" they are not more ignorant, greedy or evil than other countries, they are just a couple of decades behind." Sorry, but weak rationalization of stupidity imho. Catch up already! Use Thailands superior educational system to stay up to date. Use their state of the art 20th century 3G network... oh, not there yet? I like the idea of re-enacting, if it includes him touching his lovely handiwork.

Let's hope that next time when the owner of the land walks around his property to check, trips and falls against the fence himself.

Indeed, as another poster noted, what if it was his own child?

Elephants might have thick skin, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't feel a shock of 'not-deadly'-voltage.

Pure stupidity. Time for Thailand to change the law a bit, and for any killed wild animal put a fine of at least 1 million baht on it, which should go directly to the Department of National Parks to use for conservation.

And the poor farmer that lost two of his cows, did he get any compensation?

No need for high voltage in an electric fence.

They have been in operation in NZ for over 50 years at around 12 volts and that gives quite a jolt but does no harm

WRONG On two counts -

1. there is a need for high voltage due to the resistance of the person/beast coming into contact with the fence
2. 12 volts does not give a jolt

I am sorry but the fence is at high voltage, electronic or - in the past - electromechanical circuitry transforms the 12V from the battery to a high voltage of 30KV or more using a step-up transformer or car ignition coil. High value resistors in the megohm range keep the current to safe levels for man and beast.

To prove the point, go out to your car, raise the bonnet (hood????) and with wet hands touch the 12V battery terminals. Nothing!! Even with wet hands.

Now (IF you have resistive leads) .pull off a plug cap while the engine is running. THAT will "bite" you, NOT 12 volts directly from the battery.

Perhaps electricity on NZ farms defies all the Laws of Physics and in particular the Law propounded by the erstwhile Herr Georg Simon Ohm.

"...by the erstwhile Herr Georg Simon Ohm"

Erstwhile? Possibly "late," "deceased," "lamented." Surely he didn't change his name at death.

Where in my post did I state that people here are more ignorant, greedy or evil? It's the combination that I find peculiar and characteristic.

u didn't.

but ignorance, greed and malice are what i'd say the main characteristics of humans, no matter where they live.

To paraphrase Cecil Rhodes.... "to be born a Thai elephant is a bitch."

Not so much a paraphrase as a mangle of an all too typical English-centric & decidedly irrational world view.

“To be born an Englishman,” Cecil Rhodes once claimed, “is to win first prize in the lottery of life.”

The winning Rhodes lottery ticket:

The relevance of this sign to Cecil Rhodes and the English is quite lost on me. I seem to recollect that these notices were put up to support apartheid, a policy brought in decades after Rhodes' death by a community mainly consisting of people of Dutch descent.

Would you care to explain your logic or are you just one of those TV members who takes every opportunity to take a poke at the English.