At this time, there are 43 monkeys loose in South Carolina, United States. They escaped from a medical research facility in the city of Yemassee.
For this reason, authorities have alerted the population to keep doors and windows closed.
These specimens of Rhesus macaques, described as “skittish” by the city’s police, fled from their enclosures at the scientific facilities managed by the company Alpha Genesis.
The company specializes in biomedical research with primates. Following the incident, search teams were deployed to help locate the monkeys, who are still on the loose in the city.
“They are working to lure them with food,” reported the local police department on social media.
Monkeys on the loose in the city: the request to the population
“Residents are asked to keep their doors and windows securely closed and to immediately report any sightings by calling 911. Please do not attempt to approach these animals under any circumstances,” it stated.
Monkeys on the loose: the incident in the United States. (Photo: Pixabay).
The monkeys, which are females weighing about three kilos, have been located by Alpha Genesis employees who are trying to lure them with food, the police said in a statement issued around noon on Thursday.
“They are not infected with any disease. They are harmless and a little skittish,” said Gregory Alexander, chief of the local police.
The company usually deals with animal escapes within the facilities, but this time the monkeys got out of the compound, located about 1.6 kilometers (one mile) from the center of Yemassee, Alexander said.
“A spokesperson for Alpha Genesis can confirm that these animals are too young to be disease carriers,” explained the police department.
Greg Westergaard, CEO of Alpha Genesis, stated that the escape was “frustrating” and told CBS News that he is “hoping for a happy ending” in which the primates return on their own.
He specified that the animals were able to escape because a caregiver did not secure a gate in the enclosure.
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