HEIDELBERG, Miss. -- Monkeys being transported on a Mississippi highway escaped captivity Tuesday after the truck carrying them overturned, according to law enforcement.

The Jasper County Sheriff's Department said in a post on Facebook , warning that the monkeys were "aggressive." It was not clear how many monkeys were originally in the truck.

As of Wednesday morning, officials said they believe three monkeys remain missing.

The truck was carrying Rhesus monkeys, which typically weigh around 16 pounds (7.7 kilograms) and are among the most medically studied animals on the planet.

A truck transporting rhesus monkeys crashed along Interstate 59 near mile marker 117 in Mississippi

They were being housed at the Tulane University National Biomedical Research Center in New Orleans, Louis

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