Chimpanzees shot dead after escaping Swedish zoo enclosure

By admin On Dec 15, 2022

Three chimpanzees have been shot and killed at a Swedish zoo after a group of the primates escaped.

Five animals got out of their enclosures at the Chimpanzee House at Furuvik Zoo on Thursday, prompting an emergency response. A fourth primate was shot and injured, and has reportedly returned to its enclosure by itself.

A statement from the zoo said it warned staff to get to safety as it organised for a team of shooters to circle the area.

A view of the main entrance to Furuvik Zoo. (AP)

“During the day, unfortunately, three chimpanzees had to be euthanised for safety reasons.

“The night has been quiet. Our emergency team is guarding the chimpanzee house, where the four remaining chimpanzees reside. They are in the house, but not confined in their enclosure. This means that we cannot yet allow people to move freely in the park and we are still on full alert.”

The zoo said it did not know how the chimpanzees had escaped and it would begin an investigation as soon as possible.

The zoo has been unable to confirm which animals were euthanised because keepers have not yet been able to safely enter the Chimpanzee House.

Local media reported the animals were killed because there was not enough tranquiliser available at the zoo, located about 165 kilometres north of Stockholm.

“This is an extremely tragic situation for all involved, both animals and people. Our thoughts go out to all employees, our animals and everyone who cares for our animals. The grief is extremely heavy,” a statement from the zoo said.

How strong is a chimpanzee?

Chimpanzees are notoriously powerful animals and there are several recorded attacks on humans.

A study in PNAS journal authored by Dr Matthew C O’Neill of the University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix found the primates were stronger than humans.

The study says chimps have about twice the amount of “fast-twitch” muscle fibres as people, and were generally about 1.5 times stronger.

But the report did say the perception of the primates having “super human strength” was perhaps slightly overstated and was based on research from the 1920s.

However, their power displayed in multiple recorded attacks on people cannot be questioned.