Navy Confused By Large Object In Water But Once It's Identified Crew Goes Overboard

Jan 20, 2021 by apost team

There is little more spectacular and intriguing than life at sea. The ocean has always been a mystery, and each day during an extended journey at sea often feels like an old-world adventure.

With that said, the ocean is also a dangerous place. Back in 2017, an elephant washed out to sea off the coast of Sri Lanka. If it weren't for the Sri Lankan navy — specifically a group of navy divers — this magnificent creature likely would have drowned.

There are many things that are very unpredictable when you are out on the open water. For example, the weather can change in an instant and you never know exactly what you may see in the incredibly deep waters below your ship.

Whether it’s a group of friendly dolphins popping up to say hello, or a swarm of jellyfish basking in a pocket of warm water, life at sea is truly unpredictable. This was true for Sri Lanka’s naval team. The team is out on the ocean most days, either patrolling certain areas or performing specific missions.

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In 2017, the crew members spotted an unidentified mass in the sea during a routine patrol, as PBS News reports.

As the naval team’s boat got closer to the mass, they realized that it was alive. They saw that they were about to embark on a unique mission.

They were about 10 miles off the coast and their boat was navigating deep waters. They realized quickly that what they thought was a mass was actually a large elephant.

The elephant was highly fatigued and was struggling in the deep waters to fight for its life, according to PBS News. The naval team immediately knew that the elephant was in danger and needed their help to rescue it and return it safely to dry ground.

Many people are unaware that elephants have very buoyant bodies and trunks that function as a type of snorkel, making them quite good swimmers for their massive size and weight.

Sri Lanka’s naval team, along with additional teams that joined the group, formed a rescue plan.

During the 12-hour-long rescue, Department of Wildlife officials joined another navy vessel to tow the element back to shore, according to The Guardian. First, wildlife officials helped the divers attach ropes to the fully-grown Asian elephant. Next, they gently dragged the creature back to shallow waters, before releasing the elephant.

In an interview with The Guardian, Avinash Krishnan, a researcher for the conservation group A Rocha, explained that it isn’t that uncommon to discover elephants at sea.

“They’re very good swimmers,” Krishnan told the publication in July 2017. “Swimming about 15km (9.3 miles) from the shore is not unusual for an elephant.”

However, Krishnan also admitted that the Sri Lankan navy’s rescue was probably necessary for a variety of reasons. 

“They can’t keep swimming for long because they burn a lot of energy,” Krishnan told the publication. Krishnan also added that the ocean’s salty water was another factor that made the rescue necessary since the salt is harmful to an elephant’s skin.

According to Krishnan, Asian elephants can often be found swimming in the ocean when they need to go from one small landform to another. That’s likely how this elephant got into trouble, according to navy spokesperson Chaminda Walakuluge. Walakuluge told The Guardian that the elephant might have been swept to sea while attempting to cross a stretch of water between two parts of the Sri Lankan forest.

“They usually wade through shallow waters or even swim across to take a shortcut,” he told The Guardian. “It is a miraculous escape for the elephant.”

Two weeks after this rescue, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported on a strikingly similar story, which was later re-published in The Guardian.

Again, the Sri Lankan navy embarked on a rescue mission in the Indian Ocean — except this time there were two elephants.

“Having safely guided the two elephants to the shore, they were subsequently released to the Foul Point jungle [in Trincomalee district],” the Sri Lankan navy said in a statement, according to AFP. “They were extremely lucky to have been spotted by a patrol craft, which called in several other boats to help with the rescue.”

According to AFP, the two elephants were around half a mile off the coast of Sri Lanka, just a fraction of the last rescue’s distance. Like the previous elephant rescue, however, divers worked to attach the elephants to a series of ropes, which they then used to drag them to shallow water.

At 9-feet tall and 4 tons in weight, it’s hard to believe that Asian elephants can swim — let alone tread water in the ocean miles from shore. But according to the Elephant Encyclopedia, the creatures’ large size actually works in their favor. While they can use their four legs to tread water, their big body keeps them afloat. Meanwhile, elephants can use their trunk as a sort of snorkel.

Incredibly, the Elephant Encyclopedia notes that some researchers claim that elephants have swum as far as from Southern India to Sri Lanka, which is around 30-40 miles. It even turns out that many elephants enjoy swimming. Young elephants, according to the online encyclopedia, “love swimming and diving.” When they dive or swim, it’s as if they enjoy fighting the waves. For non-believers, there are dozens of videos on YouTube showcasing these amazing creatures’ swimming abilities.

One notable example is a video from SafariCam, which features a family of elephants swimming across the Chobe River in Botswana. The elephants slowly submerge themselves in the water. Eventually, the only thing we see is the tops of their heads and their trunks coming up for air.

One of the video’s top comments likely sums up what many viewers think when they watch this video: I never in my wildest dreams imagine elephants could swim.

With that said, in both of these rescue stories it’s important that the Sri Lankan Navy claims that the elephants were in distress and required assistance. The biggest threat to elephants around the world isn’t drowning, however; it’s habitat loss and poaching, according to the World Wildlife Foundation. 

What do you think of this elephant’s triumphant rescue? Let us know how you feel about the naval team’s heroic rescue. We would love to hear your thoughts!