Wild Elephants Knock Over EV Charger After Cable Tangles Leg in China

Vandalising electric vehicle (EV) chargers is unfortunately nothing new, but one charge point operator in China has a different story to tell after a herd of pachydermiscreants were caught on camera knocking over a charger.

According to local media reports, a carpark in China’s Yunnan province – where small numbers of wild elephants still roam relatively free – was visited by one herd on the night of August 6.

During their late-night meanderings, one of the smaller elephants gets a rear leg caught up in an EV charging cable, which is immediately noticed by another elephant who is demonstrably unimpressed.

Though the smaller elephant is able to quickly extricate itself without their assistance, the second elephant is nevertheless quick to turn its ire against the offending EV charger, using his trunk to push it to the ground. There were no EVs at the facility at the time.

Asian elephants are endangered, and there are only about 300 wild elephants in the Yunnan province, making this interaction between elephant and EV charger a relatively unique event.