43 monkeys escape research facility in Yemassee
By Delayna Earley
The Island News
More than half of the monkeys that made a grand escape from a research facility in Yemassee last week are back in custody.
As of Monday, Nov. 11, 32 of the 43 monkeys that escaped a research facility in Yemassee have been captured. The monkeys fled from captivity at Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center on Wednesday, Nov. 6, after a caretaker cleaning one of the enclosures left two doors unsecured at around 1 p.m.
It was then that a troop of female rhesus macaque monkeys escaped.
Many of the monkeys stayed close to the facility, hanging out in the trees outside of the fences. The entire group of monkeys were at large until the first one was caught on Saturday, Nov. 9.
The facility the monkeys escaped from is located on Castle Hall Road and is home to roughly 5,000 monkeys – more than the population of Yemassee itself.
The monkeys are used for biomedical research at the facility and according to the company’s website they breed monkeys and provide nonhuman primate products and bio-research services worldwide.
Police continue to warn residents in the area to lock their doors and windows as a safety measure.
The Yemassee Police Department has asked the public to help track down the monkeys by calling 911 immediately if one is spotted, but residents are asked not to interact with the monkeys.
“Residents are strongly advised to keep doors and windows secured to prevent the animals from entering homes,” said the Yemassee Police in a statement. “If you spot any of the escaped animals, please contact 911 immediately and refrain from approaching them.”
Authorities are working with staff members and the research center to try and locate the escaped monkeys by using thermal imaging cameras and setting up traps in the area.
This is not the first time that primates have escaped from the Alpha Genesis facility. In 2016, 19 monkeys escaped from the center and were recaptured roughly six hours later.
The escaped monkeys have garnered attention not only in South Carolina, but nationwide. The primates were also the subject of several jokes featured on late-night programs like Stephen Colbert, Saturday Night Live and Jimmy Kimmel.
Genesis CEO Greg Westergaard said that the monkeys are too young for testing and are disease-free.
The captured monkeys have been checked over by veterinary technicians and veterinarians and all seem to be in good health.
The search for the monkeys will continue until all have been recaptured and in a statement to the media, if they are not able to capture them with traps they will use tranquilizers.
Delayna Earley, who joined The Island News in 2022, formerly worked as a photojournalist for The Island Packet/The Beaufort Gazette, as well as newspapers in Indiana and Virginia. She can be reached at delayna.theislandnews@gmail.com.
