Youtuber Dies After Elephant Attack During Angamaly Temple Festival

Angamaly: A young Youtuber, Sooraj Pisharady (34), who was undergoing treatment after being trampled by a rogue elephant during a temple festival at Thirunayathode Sivanarayana Temple, has succumbed to his injuries. Sooraj, son of Sethumadhavan and Subhadra of Surabhi Pisharathil, Chowwara, Kalady, was well-known on social media for his videos covering temple festivals.

The incident occurred around 11:45 AM on Wednesday at the Thirunayathode Sivanarayana Temple. During the ‘Seeveli’ procession, which involved five elephants and a ‘Pancharimelam’ (traditional percussion ensemble), the elephant named ‘Chirakkal Sabarinath’ suddenly ran amok. One of the three people riding the elephant fell to the ground. As this elephant went berserk, another elephant also started to run, causing panic among the crowd who began to flee.

Sooraj, who was filming the event with his mobile camera from the front of the elephants, was knocked down by the rampaging elephant. He sustained severe head injuries and was immediately admitted to Little Flower Hospital in Angamaly.

Sooraj underwent emergency surgery on Wednesday but his health deteriorated, and he passed away on Thursday morning. In the chaos that ensued as the elephants ran amok, 19 people, including percussionists, sustained injuries from falling or colliding with others. Of these, 14 were discharged after receiving first aid. Nedumbassery police have registered a case regarding the incident.