Mother elephant faints while trying to save baby from manhole, veterinarians and workers save both of them in sweeping rescue: 'I love that CPR on an elephant is basically just jumping on them'

Briana Viser • Writer and Editor

Jan 6, 2026 1:00 PM EST

Veterinarians to the rescue! Who said 5 tons is too big to resuscitate?

The story below is one of shocking and dramatic affairs. The inconceivable and unbelievable continues to occur around us. As we enter 2026, it's important that we're surrounded by the wholesome and positive stories in the world, because we all know too well how easy it is to dwell and dabble in the negative. From a man finding his lost little girl hanging out with a puppy, to rescue stories of stray cats getting themselves a furrever home despite being a foot in snow, these are the kinds of stories we want to hear, the kind that make us excited for each day, the kind we can share to loved ones, relatives, and children.

In Khao Yai National Park near Nakhon Nayok, Thailand, a baby elephant and its mother walk along the tropical atmosphere. Suddenly, the baby elephant is taken underground, into a roadside drainage hole that it abruptly falls into. Chaos ensues, the mother screams and tries desperately to get her baby out. The Thai baby elephant cries, scared, it sits on the ground helpless on what to do.

After immense distress, the mother elephant faints, so it's up to us to help the pair. Us as in humans. A veterinarian comes on scene, along with local workers who happened to be around. They all try desperately to get the baby out. Three people ended up helping and getting the baby out by the use of a boom lift and a digger. It's a miraculous story of will, power, and love. The ability of humans to do good is actually outstanding, but it's so easy to harp on what makes humans evil, bad, or malicious. When you look deep down, you'll find that humans go out of their way to help the innocent, like in the story here about these two elephants who just needed help.

Read the full story here.

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“Rescue workers use a crane to lift up the mother elephant. […] Rescuers used a truck-mounted boom lift to pull the mother out before climbing on top of her to perform simultaneous cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) as a digger cleared away earth so the anxious calf could climb out from the slippery mud." - REUTERS
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