CONSERVATION authorities have shot dead three elephant bulls after they were trapped with no food by strongly flowing rivers. The elephants had escaped from the Kruger National Park in the eastern Mpumlanga province and were trapped between two rivers. The animals were killed because there was not enough food in the area where they were trapped to keep them alive, Mpumalanga Parks Board spokesman Sam Thabethe said. Two of the elephants had also been caught in snares. The end of the trunk of one of them had been cut off and the other had a septic hind leg, he added. The animals also posed a threat to humans, Thabethe said. “It was the only decision we could make. Human lives were in danger — they were 30 metres (yards) away from the nearest house.” The carcasses were cut up and the meat was distributed among bystanders. Conservation officials took the heads of the animals to remove their tusks.