What began as a bizarre highway accident in Mississippi has now turned into an even more shocking neighborhood drama — one involving a frightened mother, a missing research monkey, and a gun.
A week after a truck carrying lab monkeys overturned near Heidelberg, panic rippled through nearby towns as residents were warned to stay alert.
And on Sunday morning, one mother said she made a split-second decision to protect her kids — by pulling the trigger on one of the escaped primates.
A Frightening Morning for One Family
Jessica Bond Ferguson, a mother of five, said she was still half asleep when her 16-year-old son came rushing into her room.
He claimed he’d seen a monkey darting through their yard just after sunrise.
“I thought he was joking at first,” Jessica recalled. But when she looked out the window of their rural home near Heidelberg, she saw movement about 60 feet away — and quickly realized it wasn’t a prank.
“I Did What Any Mother Would Do”
Ferguson said she’d already been warned that the escaped monkeys might be dangerous and could carry diseases.
So, without wasting time, she grabbed her firearm and stepped outside.
“I did what any other mother would do to protect her children,” she explained.
“I shot at it, and it just stood there. I shot again, and that’s when it backed up and fell.”
Her kids — aged between four and sixteen — watched from inside as their mother acted out of instinct.
Officials Confirm the Monkey’s Death
The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office later confirmed that a homeowner had found one of the escaped monkeys on their property and had shot it.
Wildlife authorities collected the animal’s remains for examination.
The monkey was identified as one of the Rhesus macaques that had escaped when a transport truck overturned days earlier on Interstate 59, roughly 100 miles from Jackson.
How the Escape Happened
The monkeys had been housed at the Tulane University National Biomedical Research Center in New Orleans, Louisiana — a facility that supplies primates for medical research.
However, Tulane clarified that the animals didn’t belong to the university and weren’t being transported by them.
When the truck crashed, most of the 21 monkeys onboard were reportedly killed, but three managed to escape.
Video footage taken shortly after the wreck showed the surviving primates scrambling through tall grass beside the interstate as smashed crates labeled “Live Animals” littered the scene.
Health Concerns and Conflicting Reports
At first, there were concerns that the monkeys might be carrying infectious diseases, based on statements from the truck’s occupants.
That prompted widespread alarm on social media, with users speculating wildly about “herpes-infected monkeys” roaming Mississippi.
However, Sheriff Randy Johnson later clarified that Tulane officials had confirmed the monkeys were pathogen-free, having recently undergone health checks.
Despite that reassurance, Johnson said they still needed to be “neutralized” due to their aggressive nature.
A Troubled History of Monkey Escapes
This wasn’t the first time Rhesus monkeys had caused controversy.
A decade ago, federal inspectors reported a biosecurity breach at the same Louisiana research facility, which led to several macaques being euthanized after safety protocols were breached.
More recently, in 2024, 43 Rhesus macaques escaped from a breeding compound in South Carolina after an employee failed to lock an enclosure.
That incident also made national headlines as workers scrambled to recapture the animals.
Social Media Erupts with Shock and Jokes
As news of the Mississippi escape — and the mother’s decision to shoot one of the monkeys — spread online, reactions ranged from disbelief to dark humor.
“Only in 2025 — a truck carrying infected monkeys crashes in Mississippi,” one person posted on X (formerly Twitter). Another joked, “The zombies will be coming soon.”
Others sarcastically imagined the worst-case scenario: “That would be my luck — get herps from a crazed monkey bite at a Mississippi rest stop.”
A Community Still on Edge
While officials insist the situation is under control, locals remain uneasy.
Conservation officers and wildlife experts have been searching the wooded areas around Heidelberg to ensure no more monkeys are loose.
For Jessica Bond Ferguson, though, the ordeal was simple.
“It was about keeping my kids safe,” she said. “I didn’t want to take any chances.”
And in small-town Mississippi, her story has now become part of an almost unbelievable local legend — one where a protective mother did what she thought she had to do in the most unexpected of circumstances.