CNN
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Monkey Chaos continues as Eighteen primates remain at large from a research facility in South Carolina.

On Wednesday, 43 rhesus monkey primates escaped from the Alpha Genesis Primate Research Center in Yemassee.

Yemassee police announced Sunday afternoon that nearly half of the missing monkeys have successfully returned unharmed. However, a “significant group remains active along the fence line and has currently settled into the trees for the night,” police said in a statement.

Veterinarians who conducted welfare checks on the recovered monkeys reported that they were all in good health, according to police.

On Saturday, Yemassee police said that “a significant number of the remaining primates are still just a few feet from the property, jumping back and forth over the facility’s fence.”

The loose primates remain in the facility to interact with their caged counterparts. The update does not clarify whether the facility is monitoring all the runaway animals.

Alpha Genesis CEO Greg Westergaard told police Saturday that recovery efforts will continue “as long as necessary,” the statement said.

Police said Friday that Alpha Genesis staff and management were on site to feed and monitor the animals at the edge of the facility.

According to the police, Westergaard expressed his optimism about the monkeys’ behavior on Friday. The facility uses “Have a Heart” traps, which are humanely designed with a trapdoor.

The Alpha Genesis Test Facility specializes in non-human primate research for the biomedical research community. It is one of the largest primate facilities in the country, specifically designed for monkeys, with more than 100 hectares of land for research and breeding purposes, according to its website.

The runaway primates were seen “playfully exploring the perimeter of the facility, making contact with those still inside by cooing at them,” police said Friday. The monkeys exhibit “calm and playful behavior, which is a positive indication,” police said.

Police urged residents to stay away from the area surrounding the facility, where the runaway primates have been spotted, because the animals “can be easily startled.”

“They are described as being very skittish and will congregate in groups,” Matthew Garnes, Yemassee city manager, told CNN. The monkeys are nonviolent but can become restless from hunger, he said.

Residents have been asked to keep doors and windows closed to prevent the monkeys from entering their homes. Police advised those who encounter the missing monkeys to have no contact with them and to call 911 immediately. The young primates — all female and between 6 and 7 pounds — have never been used for testing and are too young to carry diseases, police said.

This isn’t the first rodeo in South Carolina with free-roaming monkeys. The Beaufort County Post and Courier reported that in 2016, 19 monkeys escaped from the same facility but were returned after six hours.

This is a developing story and will be updated.