Last Wednesday, 43 monkeys escaped from the Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center in Yemassee, South Carolina, causing panic among residents. These are monkeys belonging to the Rhesus macaque family known for their peculiar intelligence that causes them to have particularly curious and adventurous behavior. Alpha Genesis CEO Greg Westergaard said that the primates escaped because the janitor failed to protect the exits, stating that it was “100 percent human error.”
The Alpha Genesis testing facility specializes in nonhuman primate research for the biomedical research community. It is one of the largest primate facilities in the country designed specifically for apes, with over 100 acres of land for research and breeding purposes.
Currently, authorities from the Yemassee Police Department, which is handling the emergency, believe the escaped primates are in the wooded region surrounding the facility. For safety reasons, officers have advised residents to “keep doors and windows secured to prevent these animals from entering homes,” in a notice posted on Facebook. In addition, police advised residents not to interact with the monkeys should they encounter them and to call 911 immediately.
Meanwhile, the department disclosed that experts from the Alpha Genesis center are monitoring the situation by attempting to lure the macaques with food. Experts at the center stress that these primates, which usually move in groups, are not violent but could become restless because they are hungry.
“We have set traps to catch them in the woods near the center. Our team personnel are monitoring the area where they have been spotted,” Westergaard said.
