Seventeen people were injured when two elephants at a Sri Lankan street pageant went on a rampage on Saturday (September 7), local media reported.

TV footage of the parade shows one of the elephants bolting from a group of people before trampling bystanders as it ran down the road.

Starting from a 600-year-old Buddhist temple, the annual street pageant or Perahera, sees dancers and elaborately decorated elephants parade through the streets of Kotte.

According to local media reports, the injured are receiving treatment at the Kalubowila Teaching Hospital, the Colombo General Hospital, and the Sri Jayawardenapura General Hospital.