An elephant refuses to leave a tree—when a ranger climbed up and saw THIS, he called the police

Dawn was beginning to illuminate the outskirts of the reserve when Ranger Thomas received a strange call. A resident, barely catching his breath, claimed that the young elephant had somehow ended up on the branches of a huge wild fig and categorically did not want to come down. Thomas at first thought the man was exaggerating. Elephants don't climb trees. But, having arrived at the place, he stopped smiling. At a height of about four meters, stuck between the thick branches of an old tree, there really was an African elephant. Its massive body almost completely blocked the trunk's fork. Dozens of residents had already gathered around. People tried to force the animal to come down by waving branches and shouting. However, the elephant seemed to have turned to stone. He did not show aggression; he only squeezed his trunk and looked intently down into the dark hole inside the hollow trunk. Thomas realized that the situation was much more serious than the usual attempt of an animal to climb higher. If a frightened elephant breaks loose, it can suffer fatal injuries. Wearing protective gloves and taking a powerful flashlight, the ranger carefully climbed up a nearby branch to approach the animal. When he got close, two things immediately alerted him. The elephant did not try to attack. He was literally shaking with fear. In addition, a strange metallic sound was coming from the depths of the tree - uniform, repeating at regular intervals. Thomas carefully touched the animal's side, trying to calm it down, and directed the flashlight beam into the black cavity of the trunk. What he saw made him freeze. There was no snake, no wild animal, no bees' nest. Inside were metal parts, tangled wires, and yellow bags with biohazard warning signs. But the worst thing was revealed deeper. An illegal acoustic device was hidden in the tree's cavity. It produced a high-frequency signal designed to panic elephants and was used by poachers to direct herds to pre-prepared areas. Now it became clear why the animal ended up in the tree. The unusual sound brought him to panic. While trying to get away from the source of the noise, the elephant climbed into the lower branches and accidentally ended up directly above the mechanism connected to the device. Any sudden movement could trigger the device. And directly below it were three unexploded mortar shells connected to a working battery. Thomas slowly removed his hand from the animal. My heart was beating wildly. The usual call to veterinarians could no longer solve the problem. He took out his satellite phone and contacted the national police bomb disposal experts directly. Now the main task was not just to save the elephant. It was necessary to ensure that not a single move of his would turn the rescue operation into a disaster.