CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Nearly 20 monkeys are still on the loose after they escaped from a South Carolina research facility.
As of Monday, 30 monkeys have been recovered in the low country.
Law enforcement agencies in the Yemassee area, which is about 200 miles south of Charlotte, just east of Interstate 95, have teamed up with the lab to try and locate them. At one point, the lab said it had eyes on the monkeys and was trying to lure them back with food.
This story has made headlines across the country.
Many are taking to social media to talk about the situation. One viewer sent our Verify team a message claiming there is another facility in South Carolina on an island with even more primates running around.
THE CLAIM:
We got an email from a viewer saying: There is another spot where there are monkeys roaming in South Carolina. So, is this true?
THE ANSWER:
OUR SOURCES:
WHAT WE FOUND:
According to the National Library of Medicine, in the summer of 1979, the rhesus monkey breeding colony in a Caribbean primate research center was shipped to Morgan Island in South Carolina.
The island is made up of 4,000 acres just north of Beaufort, South Carolina, and south of Edisto Beach.
Morgan Island is owned and managed by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, and the monkey colony is owned by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
The National Library of Medicine confirmed almost 4,000 monkeys are on the island.
The public is not allowed on the island. In fact, it’s illegal to even try and access it.
The only way to see the island from afar is through a boat or helicopter.
Contact Meghan Bragg at mbragg@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
