A British tourist was killed and her father and sister were wounded when a bull elephant went berserk at a seaside resort in Pattaya, Thailand, wire agencies reported.
Andrea Taylor, 23, died in hospital after being trampled and gorged on Monday by the elephant at a show for tourists at Suan Nong Nuch, a private animal park in Pattaya, 44 miles southeast of Bangkok.
Her father and sister were wounded while trying to help her. Her father broke his leg and her sister was in intensive care with abdominal injuries, media reports said. The animal was eventually brought under control and is still at the resort.
Staff at the tourist park could be reached for comment and circumstances of the attack were not immediately clear. Thai police are investigating.
The Bangkok Post newspaper reported the bull elephant had turned on the handler of another elephant, grabbing him with its trunk and hurling him to the ground, before turning on the tourists sitting in the front row.
This may prompt the Thai tourism industry to rethink the role of elephants in their business.
TravelWeekly East will be running a feature on elephants in Thailand's tourism in the May 11 issue.