A gaggle of monkeys being transported on a Mississippi freeway that escaped captivity Tuesday after the truck carrying them overturned didn’t carry a harmful infectious illness, a college has stated.
The truck was carrying rhesus monkeys, which generally weigh round 16lbs (7.7kg) and are among the many most medically studied animals on the planet.
Video reveals monkeys crawling by tall grass on the aspect of Interstate 59 simply north of Heidelberg, Mississippi, with wood crates labeled “reside animals” crumpled and strewn about.
The native sheriff’s division initially stated the monkeys have been carrying illnesses together with herpes, however Tulane College stated in an announcement that the monkeys “haven’t been uncovered to any infectious agent”.
All however one of many escaped monkeys have been killed, the Jasper county sheriff’s division stated in a publish on Fb, warning that the monkeys have been “aggressive”.
They have been being housed on the Tulane College Nationwide Biomedical Analysis Middle in New Orleans, Louisiana, which routinely gives primates to scientific analysis organizations, in keeping with the college.
The crash occurred about 100 miles (160km) from the state capital of Jackson. It was not clear what brought about the truck to overturn.
The Related Press contributed to this report
