Last Monkey from Jasper County Truck Crash Captured
JASPER COUNTY, Miss. — The last of 21 monkeys that escaped from a truck crash on Interstate 59 has been captured.
The incident occurred last week near Heidelberg, when the truck overturned, leading to several monkeys escaping. Video footage showed monkeys and wooden crates scattered in tall grass alongside the highway. During the search, which involved personnel in protective gear combing fields and woods, five monkeys were unfortunately killed, and three were initially unaccounted for.
According to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the final rhesus monkey was tranquilized on Wednesday and taken into custody by the transporting bio company. Over the weekend, another missing monkey was shot, and a third was killed after it crossed Interstate 59 a mile from the crash site.
The monkeys were housed at the Tulane University National Biomedical Research Center in Louisiana, which regularly supplies primates for research purposes. PreLabs was responsible for transporting the animals and coordinated with authorities throughout the recovery efforts.