No scanner to scan Seetha’s chest cavity: Prof. Dangolla

By Chaturanga Pradeep Samarawickrama

No scanner can scan inside the chest cavity (in the lungs or near the heart) of the Seetha elephant, Peradeniya University Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science Faculty Prof. Ashoka Dangolla said.

He told the Daily Mirror that eight metal pieces were discovered inside the Seetha elephant’s body following a scan.
“The doctors attached to the Wildlife Department and the Zoological Department found eight metal pieces inside the elephant,” the professor said.

When I did the surgery using a scanner and a metal dictator, I found three metal pieces, including dust and a metal ball, he said.

The female elephant, ‘Seetha’, was injured following a shooting incident by a wildlife officer. After receiving treatments, the elephant was taken to Maharagama to its residence in a truck on Tuesday (18) afternoon.
An X-ray has to be taken to find the metal pieces inside the chest cavity.

However, the magistrate’s order had been received to take a blood sample tomorrow.
Meanwhile, visiting the elephant, Nawa Sinhala Ravaya Organization’s General Secretary Magalkande Sudaththa Thera said the wildlife minister or Wildlife Director General should investigate the incident regarding this elephant, and there is no safety for elephants.
A total of 326 wild elephants have died due to various human activities, and the wildlife department has failed to protect them, the Thera said.