YAOUNDE, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Thousands of people in Cameroon's arid Far North province face food shortages after grazing elephants trampled hundreds of hectares of crops, villagers and officials said on Friday.

Floods at the height of the intense June-September rainy season force the pachiderms each year to leave the Waza Park and head south in search of pasture, devastating farmland and generating conflict with the local population.

"Every year since 1990, the elephants have caused damage, but this year has been particularly bad," said Jean Dilon Haman, chair of the Committee for the Fight against Food Insecurity in Doyang village. "Today it is hard to find food and famine is taking root."

More than 5,000 inhabitants of Doyang have been left short of food after more than 800 hectares (1,980 acres) of farmland was devastated. Haman appealed to the government for aid.

According to Martin Tchamba of environmental group WWF, the elephant population of the northern Cameroon has swollen in recent decades due to migration from neighbouring Chad.

In Dir village, 46-year-old Jean Pierre Djibrilla, a father of four, attempted to commit suicide when he discovered his five-hectare (12-acre) millet farm was destroyed. He was rescued by fellow villagers and taken to a health centre.

"I put in a lot of energy and worked on my farm very well this year. I was looking forward to a great harvest next month. Now I don't know how I am going to feed my family," he said.

The provincial delegate for Agriculture and Rural Development Philemone Adama acknowledged the hardships suffered by farmers but played down the risk of famine.

"The damage done to farms is enormous but for now we cannot yet talk of looming famine looming. Our worry is that the situation may worsen as there is a likelihood of a locust invasion from Chad," he said.

AlertNet news is provided by