Houston Zoo exhibit evacuated after chimp smashes glass window

Tuesday, October 30, 2018

Houston zoo evacuated after chimp his enclosure

Houston Zoo evacuated after a chimp broke the interior panel of glass at its habitat.

HOUSTON, Texas -- The Houston Zoo was forced to evacuate its chimpanzee habitat Monday morning after one of the animals smashed an interior panel of glass.

Zookeepers rushed to get chimpanzees into their indoor housing after the incident around 11 a.m. The zoo says they will remain indoors until the glass can be replaced.

The zoo says no guests or animals were ever in danger and that no sharp edges were exposed when the window pane was broken.

The walkway through the African Forest has been reopened after being closed to zoo visitors during the incident.

"It's kind of crazy that a chimpanzee broke out a glass. I'm kind of glad we weren't here when it happened. We walked by and there's a divider and there's not chimpanzees in there," said zoo visitor Sarah Long.

Monday's incident comes on the heels of a situation nearly a year ago, when a gorilla escaped her barrier and got into the hog exhibit.

Houston Zoo gorilla escapes barrier into hog exhibit

A gorilla escaped a barrier at her Houston Zoo enclosure into a hog exhibit area Saturday afternoon.

The Houston Zoo released this statement to ABC13:

At around 11 this morning, a chimpanzee broke the interior panel of glass at the habitat. This is a multilayered panel, and the broken pane was fully encapsulated, ensuring there were no sharp edges on either the chimpanzee or guest sides. Safety protocols were enacted swiftly and accurately, and at no point were guests or animals in danger. Part of the safety protocols included recalling the chimpanzees to their indoor housing. They will remain there until the glass panel is replaced. The walkway through the African Forest has reopened to guests.