Ranchi,  Residents of a village in Jharkhand's Khuti district on Wednesday morning came face to face with a 'mammoth' problem they found quite difficult to handle on their own: An elephant trapped in a village well. So, they summoned help from Forest Department officials, who helped the jumbo escape from his confinement.

An official said that the elephant must have fallen into the well in Ukrimari village on Tuesday night, though the villagers spotted the wild animal this morning.

The villagers informed the area forest officials, who brought along a JCB and dug one side of the well to form a ramp. Villagers then shouted to drive out the elephant, who made a dash to freedom into the adjoining forest area.

Forest officials said the pachyderm must have fallen into the well during the visit of an elephant herd to the area in search of food in the night hours.