2 Chimps Shot Dead After Attacking Couple

A man and his wife were injured and two chimpanzees were shot dead Thursday after several chimps broke from their cages at an animal sanctuary and attacked the visiting couple, authorities said.

St. James Davis, 62, was first treated at Kern Medical Center after the chimpanzee attack at Animal Haven Ranch, about 20 miles southeast of Bakersfield, said Kern County Sheriff’s Sgt. Jeff Hunt.

Doctors at the hospital said most of Davis’ face had been gnawed off by the animals. His wife, Ladonna Davis, 64, suffered a bite wound on the hand.

Her husband was later transported to Loma Linda University Medical Center in Loma Linda, near San Bernardino, where he was in critical condition and undergoing surgery late Thursday night, according to Steve Martarano, spokesman for the California Department of Fish and Game.

The Davises were at the sanctuary to celebrate the birthday of Moe, a chimp they rescued in Africa in the 1960s after a poacher killed its mother.

The couple had taken Moe a cake and were standing outside his cage when Buddy and Ollie, two of the four chimpanzees in the adjoining cage, attacked St. James Davis, Martarano said. Officials do not yet know how the chimps got out of their enclosure, he added.

Moe was taken from the Davises’ West Covina home in 1999 after biting two people. Moe reportedly was not involved in Thursday’s attack.

The son-in-law of the sanctuary’s owner shot and killed Buddy and Ollie, officials said. Two other chimps escaped from their cages but were eventually recovered, according to Martarano.