# 43 monkeys escape from South Carolina medical research site, police say risk to public is low
Police in Yemassee, South Carolina, said 43 rhesus macaque monkeys escaped from the Alpha Genesis research facility after a new employee did not fully shut an enclosure. The animals are small female monkeys weighing about 7 pounds each, and local officials said they posed little danger to the public.
Yemassee Police Chief Gregory Alexander told reporters the monkeys were “harmless and a little skittish” and said they were not infected with any disease. That assessment shaped the public guidance that followed the escape: nearby residents were told to keep windows and doors shut so the monkeys would not hide inside homes, and to call 911 if they saw any of the animals.
The company, which supplies primates for medical research, said employees were trying to lure the monkeys back with food while also using traps and thermal imaging cameras. The escape was not the first at the facility. The AP report noted prior incidents in 2014, 2016 and 2018, including a federal fine tied to housing and water problems.
The latest incident adds to long-running scrutiny of Alpha Genesis, but the evidence in this packet supports only the immediate facts of the escape, the public safety advice, and the company’s active recovery effort. Officials said the animals got outside the compound about a mile from downtown Yemassee, making the search more complicated than a routine on-site recapture.
The response also reflects how research-animal escapes are handled when the animals are young and not known to be carrying disease. Rather than treating the situation as an emergency involving public exposure, officials focused on containment, recovery and household precautions. That distinction is central to the story: the number of escapees was large, but the risk assessment from police was comparatively low.
Alpha Genesis did not respond to the AP’s inquiry, and the company’s silence left officials to explain the incident. In that sense, the public narrative came first from law enforcement rather than from the facility itself. For residents near Yemassee, the practical message was simple: stay alert, secure your home, and let the handlers do the work of bringing the animals back.
The broader concern is institutional, not immediate. The packet shows a research facility with a history of escape incidents, a local police department trying to reassure residents, and animal handlers using whatever tools they had to regain control. Even without signs of disease, the escape created a logistical and reputational problem for Alpha Genesis and another test of how a facility like this manages recurring failures.
