Jeff Corwin attacked by elephant [in Cambodia], lives to tell

Mar 24, 2007
By Stone Martindale
Posted at Monsters and Critics

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia -- Animal show host and Massachusetts native Jeff Corwin got a bit more than he was bargaining for when he and Anderson Coooper from CNN were "interviewing" a bathing pachyderm.

Corwin was being interviewed on air when suddenly the elephant grabbed Corwin's arm, who screamed while the elephant curled its trunk around him and forcibly yanked him down almost under the giant animal, as a stunned Cooper looked on and tried to extricate him. "Alas, in the end, the elephant got the better of me. Now I know that pachyderms not only like to gobble peanuts down their gullets, but the occasional elbow as well. Yikes!" said Corwin on the CNN live blog.

Corwin states that an elephant is "easily 15,000 times stronger than my meager self, and if she had wanted to, she could have done far worse than crushing a bit of ligament and muscle. Lucky for me, no broken bones, hopefully no connective tissue torn."

Corwin and Cooper were in southeast Asia reporting on various wildlife crisis situations, illegal poaching and black market of endangered animal parts in open air markets.

Said Corwin on the CNN blog: "Today in Cambodia, there may be only a few hundred of these intelligent, mighty and charismatic behemoths left. What a tragedy it would be to lose the Asian elephant. My advice to you, though, is if you're ever taking a bath with an elephant, keep your elbow out of its mouth!"

Elephant tosses colleague like ragdoll

Thursday, March 22, 2007

By Anderson Cooper
Posted at Anderson Cooper, 360 deg. Blog, CNN

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia -- Let me just start out by saying Jeff Corwin, the wildlife biologist who is part of our "Planet in Peril" series, is ok. But there were a few moments earlier today when I wasn't so sure. You'll see the video tonight, but basically, an elephant grabbed hold of Jeff's arm with his mouth and tossed him like a ragdoll. Jeff had warned me that while elephants can be very playful, they don't know their own strength. He was certainly right about that.

Here's what happened: We were helping some handlers bathe the elephants at Cambodia's Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Center, when one of the elephants slowly got hold of Jeff's arm. I say slowly, but it also happened really fast. I know it's a contradiction, but once you see the video, you'll understand.

We thought Jeff's arm was broken at first, but once we were out of the water it became clear that it had just been badly twisted and was deeply bruised. Jeff was able to continue working, which I found kind of amazing, and afterwards we stopped off at a clinic so a doctor could check out his arm. It's now in a sling.

Other than that disturbing event, it was actually a pretty good day. I got to help Jeff bag some pythons, we hung out with some bears, and I got up close and personal with an elephant's trunk. All the animals at the Phnom Tamao Wildlife Rescue Center are victims of the illegal animal trade or habitat loss. If it wasn't for the center and conservationists from the Wildlife Alliance, these animals would all likely be dead.

When we arrived at the center, veterinarians were just about to sedate a young elephant whose foot was ripped off trying to escape a poachers' snare. It was very sad to see this little orphan elephant missing one of its feet. His name is Chook, and he's only been at the center for about two weeks. He is still badly malnourished and the wound is still being treated. Despite the best efforts of the Wildlife Alliance folks, he may not survive.

Tonight on the program, we'll show you all of this, as well as continue our reporting on the trafficking of women and children into prostitution in Cambodia. Dan Rivers reported last night on the program about the large number of child abuses cases here, and tonight he has a story about a little girl who has been through an unimaginable nightmare in Cambodia's child prostitution industry.

We'll also bring you the latest on Elizabeth Edwards condition and her husband's decision to continue his presidential campaign. It's going to be a really interesting program, and I hope you are able to watch.

What it's like to be tossed by an elephant

An elephant grabs hold of Jeff Corwin's arm while filming with Anderson Cooper.

Friday, March 23, 2007
By Jeff Corwin, Wildlife Biologist
Posted at Anderson Cooper 360 deg. Blog, CNN

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia -- Alas, in the end, the elephant got the better of me. Now I know that pachyderms not only like to gobble peanuts down their gullets, but the occasional elbow as well. Yikes!

Truth is that elephant is easily 15,000 times stronger than my meager self, and if she had wanted to, she could have done far worse than crushing a bit of ligament and muscle. Lucky for me, no broken bones, hopefully no connective tissue torn (will have to wait till I get home to find out about that).

In the end, this experience is a reminder to me just how powerful these majestic creatures are (same goes for many other species as well). The elephant who took to nibbling on my elbow may be strong, but her strength does not hold up to the impact that deforestation and poaching is having on her species, the Asian elephant.

Just a century ago, there were many thousands of elephants roaming and thriving throughout the rainforests of Southeast Asia, but tragically today, their population has been dramatically reduced, almost to near extinction in the wild.

Today in Cambodia, there may be only a few hundred of these intelligent, mighty and charismatic behemoths left. What a tragedy it would be to lose the Asian elephant. My advice to you, though, is if you're ever taking a bath with an elephant, keep your elbow out of its mouth!