Daegu 'Planet of the Apes' Two Chimpanzees... One Male Dies After Failing to Recover from Anesthesia

Two chimpanzees that escaped from the Daegu Dalseong Park breeding center were captured after being shot with tranquilizer darts, but one of them did not wake up from the anesthesia and died.

According to Daegu City on the 11th, at around 9:11 a.m. that day, one male and one female chimpanzee pushed a caretaker who was cleaning the breeding center and escaped.

About 20 minutes after the escape, at around 9:30 a.m., the female chimpanzee Alex returned to the enclosure on her own, but at around 10:40 a.m., the male chimpanzee Rudy was subdued after being shot with a tranquilizer dart.

During this process, Rudy, aged 25, suffocated around 1:30 p.m. due to airway obstruction while recovering from the anesthesia.

A Daegu city official stated, “After the anesthesia, he was transported to Dongin Animal Hospital, a wildlife rescue animal hospital, for recovery measures and emergency treatment, but ultimately passed away.”

On that day, after the male chimpanzee showed aggression and bit a caretaker before escaping, the zoo subdued him by shooting a tranquilizer dart in the outer area of Dalseong Fortress to ensure citizen safety.

On the morning of the 11th, chimpanzees escaped from the zoo enclosure at Dalseong Park in Daegu. On that day, a total of two chimpanzees, one female and one male, escaped, prompting the fire department and police to attempt capture. However, the male was shot with a tranquilizer dart and died without recovering.
[Image source=Daegu Fire Safety Headquarters]