Six Baby Rhinos Rescued From India Flood, Travelled By Boat

Six baby rhinos who were at risk of being washed away by flood waters were rescued by wildlife workers in Northeastern India. The rains have also flooded wide tracts of the Kaziranga national park, which is home to the world's largest population of the one-horned rhinoceros.

An official at wildlife, Rathin Barman, said that six baby rhinos have been rescued since the flood began. All of the rescued baby rhinos will currently stay at the centre and will be released into the wild once the flood waters subside.

Wildlife workers travelled through two villages by boat to save the animals from the Kaziranga National Park, The Telegraph reported. The assistant manager at Awareness for Conservation, Subhamoy Bhattacharjee, explained that the courage and empathy of the flood-affected villagers deserves special mention as they came together, setting aside their own predicament, to save a baby animal.

In an interview, a villager said that all households in the area have their own boats since the area is flood prone. The villager continued to explain that somehow, they managed to drag the baby rhino and tie it to a tree in front of a house which only had a small space to stand but was safe from the flood waters for the time being.

Veterinarian Dr. Samshul Ali who helped with the rescue added that this marks the first of its kind baby rhino rescue in the present flood phase. He explained that they had to be very cautious with the handling of the animal particularly during the boat journey.

One baby rhino, however, drowned in the floods unfortunately, Time reported. The forest guards found the baby rhino's remains in the park located alongside the Brahmaputra river. The river was reported to have overflowed the danger mark at several places and breached its banks at others.