HANOI, Vietnam (AP) -- A herd of wild elephants went on a rampage through a village in southern Vietnam, killing one villager, destroying homes and trampling crops, state-run news media reported.

The roughly 20-member herd has terrorized Gia Canh, a village just north of Ho Chi Minh City, for a week, the Saigon Times Daily said. Villager Thai Can Khanh was killed when an elephant stormed through his garden, knocking him down and trampling on him, the newspaper said.

Wild elephants used to roam throughout much of southern and central Vietnam. The beasts were sometimes pressed into service as porters in the Vietnam War.

The destruction of habitat and poachers has since cut into their numbers, and the elephants are now on the brink of extinction in Vietnam.