Two elephants have died after a sanctuary was flooded in the northern Thailand city of Chiang Mai. Fah Sai and Ploy Thong were swept away by floodwaters as rescuers worked to evacuate the animals from the shelter. Their bodies were later found roughly five kilometres downstream, amidst a pile of debris.

Flash floods swept through a popular elephant sanctuary in northern Thailand on Thursday, forcing the evacuation of about 100 elephants and trapping dozens of tourists, amid urgent pleas for help. Dramatic video and images from the Elephant Nature Park near the city of Chiang Mai showed dozens of elephants wading through belly-deep water to find safety on higher ground.