JACKSON (WABC) -- A wayward baboon remained on the loose in southern New Jersey on Friday afternoon, causing some concern among local residents but creating a buzz among numerous online followers who were closely following the animal's travels.
"I saw the red hiney and I knew it was a baboon - instant panic!" said eyewitness Stacey Murphy.
Murphy was in the kitchen making food for the 4th of July when she made her first sighting.
"It just walked here like it was nothing. It was on all fours. If it was standing up, how tall would it have been? My height?" she said.Murphy then screamed at the top of her lungs - so loud it woke her 12-year-old son up.
So far, there have been five sightings like this over the past two days.
All five sightings were in areas not far from Six Flags Great Adventure's Monkey Jungle in Jackson Township, leading to speculation that the baboon may have escaped from the park, which has 150 baboons. But officials there were still unsure Friday if one of their animals is missing because they are not counted daily, and crews that went looking for the baboon after the initial sightings have found no signs that an escape may have occurred.
"They have been out there looking for clues, like paw prints or tracks, but they didn't find any signs a baboon had been there," said Kristen Siebeneicher, the park's communications director.
She said the team included a veterinarian, a safari manager and security staff.The first baboon sighting came Thursday, when a driver said the animal was near Interstate 195, and later that day a woman said a baboon was sitting on her back porch in Jackson. On Friday morning, two residents in developments not far from the park reported a baboon was in their neighborhoods.
Murphy says that she just wants the baboons to be caught in time for her holiday party.
"They need to because I am having 25 people tonight and 4-0 tomorrow! They need to catch the thing!" she said.
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Some information from The Associated Press
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