Forty-Three Monkeys Escape From US Research Lab

An anonymous reader quotes a report from the BBC: Police are on the hunt for 43 monkeys who escaped from a research facility in South Carolina, after a keeper left their pen open. The rhesus macaque fugitives broke out of Alpha Genesis, a company that breeds primates for medical testing and research, and are on the loose in a part of the state known as the Lowcountry.
Authorities have urged residents to keep their doors and windows securely closed and to report any sightings immediately. The escaped monkeys are young females, weighing about 7lbs (3.2kg) each, according to the Yemassee Police Department. Police said on Thursday that the company had located the 'skittish' group, and 'are working to entice them with food.'

'Please do not attempt to approach these animals under any circumstances,' police said. The statement added that traps had been set in the area, and police were on-site 'utilizing thermal-imaging cameras in an attempt to locate the animals'. Police say the research company has told them that because of their size, the monkeys have not yet been tested on and 'are too young to carry disease.' In an update Friday, the local police department said the monkeys are still staying around the perimeter of the facility. 'The primates are exhibiting calm and playful behavior, which is a positive indication,' the department noted.

'They're just being goofy monkeys jumping back and forth playing with each other,' Alpha Genesis CEO Greg Westergaard told CBS News Thursday. 'It's kind of like a playground situation here.'

The article points out that all the escaped monkeys 'carry no contagious viruses because they were too young to test, according to the lab. '

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