A rhesus macaque named Forrest spent a week loose in Mississippi after a transport truck crashed on Interstate 65 in late October 2025. Of the eight monkeys that escaped, he was the only one authorities couldn't immediately locate. Now, three months later, he's settled into Popcorn Park Animal Refuge in Forked River, New Jersey—nearly 1,000 miles from where he ran.
Forrest was originally designated "NI 62" at Tulane National Primate Research Center, one of 21 monkeys being transported when the accident happened. The crash created an unusual situation: while the other escapees were quickly recaptured or euthanized, Forrest evaded capture long enough that returning him to the research program became impossible. "Because he had spent so much time outside of the facility, he could not return," Popcorn Park explained when they agreed to take him in.
For a monkey who'd known only laboratory conditions, a week outdoors in Mississippi was survival. But it also changed his trajectory entirely.
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At the refuge, Forrest is recovering from a small nose injury sustained during his escape. The staff has watched him adjust to sanctuary life with cautious optimism. He's discovered preferences—grapes and peanuts rank high—and he's started vocalizing more frequently, which caregivers recognize as a sign he's becoming comfortable and confident in his new surroundings. These small shifts matter. For a young primate who'd never had the chance to choose what he ate or express himself freely, they signal something like trust.
The incident echoes a 2024 escape at a South Carolina biomedical facility, where 43 monkeys fled and were eventually recaptured. Those cases highlight a recurring tension: the logistics of transporting research animals, the vulnerability of the systems holding them, and what happens when those systems fail. In Forrest's case, failure became opportunity.
He's now one of the animals Popcorn Park will care for throughout his life—a commitment that shifts him from research subject to resident, from a number to a name. The refuge operates on the principle that animals deserve that second life, especially when circumstance offers it.
