Apes escape from the Alpha Genesis research facility in Yemassee, SC

On By Littum

Traps have been set up around the area and the Yemassee Police Department is using thermal cameras to locate the escaped animals.

game

Dozens of monkeys are on the loose in South Carolina. Residents in Yemassee and surrounding areas have been “strongly advised” to secure all doors and windows to prevent the animals from entering their homes.

Forty monkeys escaped Alpha Genesisa primate research facility in Yemassee, a small town about 26 miles from Beaufort, on Wednesday The Yemassee Police Department said in a post on Facebook. The department did not specify which monkeys escaped the facility. The says the company’s website it conducts research projects for government, university and private industry clients with cynomolgous, rhesus and capuchin monkeys.

“Traps have been set up around the area and the Yemassee Police Department is currently on the scene using thermal cameras in an attempt to locate the animals,” the post department said in an update around 6 p.m. 9:45 PM Wednesday and added the department. is working with Alpha Genesis staff to resolve this situation.

Authorities advised residents to “refrain from approaching” the monkeys and call 911 immediately if they see any of the escaped animals.

The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Officein an alert, said it was working with local authorities to locate the escaped primates, adding “the public’s assistance is appreciated in efforts to locate and return these animals to their enclosures.”

It is not known how the primates escaped the facility, and Alpha Genesis did not immediately respond to USA TODAY’s request for comment on the incident.

Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.