A Western Lowlands Gorilla escaped its captors this morning at Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia, S.C., injuring a food service employee and forcing a lock down of the popular regional tourist attraction.
Some local TV stations are reporting that the animal ran wild for nearly an hour, although Zoo sources tell FITS those reports are exaggerated.
“There was only an animal outside of its containment for five minutes,” Riverbanks spokeswoman Lindsey Burke told FITS. “The duration from the beginning of the incident until the all clear was sounded was forty-five minutes.”
Burke confirmed that a food services employee had been injured in the breakout, but could not provide an update on the status of the employee’s injuries.
According to Riverbanks’ website, the zoo currently has three gorillas (Chaka, Mike and Kimya). The all-male group was transferred to South Carolina from Philadelphia Zoo five years ago.
Western Lowlands gorillas stand approximately five feet high and can weigh as much as 450 pounds. They are generally regarded as peaceful.
Burke confirmed that “Mike” was the gorilla who escaped containment.
Riverbanks is holding a media briefing this morning on the incident, and a formal press conference this afternoon at 3:00 p.m.
WEB EXTRA
By Big Bubba June 12, 2009 at 11:50 am
Big Bubba thinks that this monkey is trying to git to Chesterfield County to mingle with the local monkeys that are in the spotlight.
By Rick June 12, 2009 at 12:19 pm
Attempting to attend the latest legislature meeting?
By Jeffy June 12, 2009 at 2:36 pm
Looking for BIN!
By JOHNNY BOY June 12, 2009 at 4:14 pm
MR. CLYBURN I PRESUME
By Darkseid616 June 12, 2009 at 4:50 pm
And if he didnt have any luck in Chesterfield he would head to Johnsonville.
By newzjunkie June 12, 2009 at 5:28 pm
@JohnnyBoy: There you go with the racial jokes. Come out from behind the cloth. Show you face or be the coward you and your friends have always been.
By male sapphist June 12, 2009 at 7:41 pm
I can see the gorilla in the bowels of Columbia City Hall, like the Samsonite Gorilla, thrashing file cabinets with reams of greenbar paper in the air as he tries to make some sense of the city’s financial situation. Even a gorilla knows this aint right.
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By Americas Best Zoos author June 27, 2009 at 12:58 pm
This was purely an accident, so no one should be alarmed. Thankfully no one was seriously hurt. It says a lot that the gorilla went back to his habitat on his own — it says that he knows where he is well cared for, that he wants to live in the Zoo.
This is really a nice Zoo! I always enjoy visiting it, with its many interesting and beautiful exhibits.