Monkey Business in South Carolina: 24 Out of 43 Monkeys Recaptured

Imagine this: 43 monkeys on the loose in South Carolina! It all started when a worker at Alpha Genesis in Beaufort County left a door open during feeding time. Oops! The Yemassee Police Department quickly teamed up with the facility to catch the escapees. By Sunday, 24 of the Rhesus macaques were safely back home. These monkeys were spotted playing by the fence, interacting with their friends still inside. The police set traps and used thermal cameras to find them. They even asked locals to keep their doors and windows shut and call 911 if they saw any monkeys.

Alpha Genesis has a big job ahead: catching the remaining monkeys. They're all female and about the size of house cats, so they're not dangerous. But it's still important to get them back safely. This isn't the first time this has happened. In 2016, 19 monkeys escaped, but they were all caught within six hours. This time, it's taking a bit longer. The facility has had some safety issues in the past. The USDA found problems with the enclosures and even had to investigate some monkey deaths. Alpha Genesis said they fixed these problems, but this escape shows there might still be work to do.

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