A number of tourists at Thailand's Khao Lak beach resort may owe their lives to elephants who apparently sensed that last week's powerful tsunami was approaching, and sounded a warning.
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Reuters news agency says eight elephants that are normally used to carry tourists on rides along the beachfront became agitated last Sunday, more than an hour before the first tsunami wave hit the shore. The beasts then began trumpeting in an unusual manner, their trainers said it sounded as if the elephants were "crying," and pulled at their chains, trying to leave the beach.
Later, just before the first gigantic wave inundated the beach, the elephants resumed their plaintive chorus and broke away from their trainers, heading for a nearby hill covered in jungle vegetation. By this time the trainers realized what was happening, and followed.
Some of the pachyderms lifted tourists onto their backs with their trunks, Reuters says, then charged up the hill into the jungle to a safe place.
Scientists have noted on many occasions that similar unusual behavior by animals has appeared to anticipate natural calamities such as earthquakes.
Some of this information provided by Reuters.