KUALA LUMPUR — An emotional video captured a mother elephant’s desperate attempts to save her calf, which was struck and killed by a lorry on the Gerik-Jeli East-West Highway early this morning.

The heart-wrenching footage, showing the female elephant pushing against the lorry and refusing to leave her calf’s side, went viral, touching the hearts of social media users.

The incident, which occurred around 2am, involved a lorry carrying chickens, with the calf found trapped beneath it. The Perak Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan) arrived at 3:30am, relocated the mother to safety, and removed the deceased calf.

The five-year-old male calf’s body was later disposed of according to protocol.