Since May 11, 2 monkeys have appeared in the Ba Chua Temple area, attracting the attention of locals and tourists. Many people gathered to take photos, record videos and feed them the fruits.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Tam (62 years old), a resident of Tran Hung Dao ward, recalled: When my friends and I left our clothes on the shore and went swimming in the sea early in the morning, the big monkey took them and threw them into the water. When filming, it still held a shirt in hand. The whole group had to wear long, wet clothes to go home.
Mr. Nguyen Van Bon (66 years old, Bach Dang ward) said: "On Bai Tho mountain, there are about 20 monkeys. They often go to the nearby Long Tien Pagoda every morning and evening to find fruit. The two monkeys that appeared at the Ba Chua Temple following me also came down from Bai Tho Mountain. In which, the big monkey was very bold, not afraid to approach people, even crawled into a car, and snatched the phone of the person filming it.
According to records, some people have been attacked by large monkeys, even bitten and bleeding.
This situation raises concerns about the safety of people and tourists and affects the hygiene of the Ba Chua temple area as well as traffic order along the Tran Quoc Nghien coastal road.
On the afternoon of May 12, Ha Long City Forest Protection coordinated with local authorities to arrest the two monkeys. However, the capture process encountered many difficulties because the large monkey kept running away, climbing mountains and then getting close to the coast.
After about 45 minutes, the Lam Security force caught the large monkey and brought it to the island, returning it to the natural environment. The remaining small monkey ran back up to Bai Tho mountain.
A Forest Protection officer said that the unit is verifying the origin of the two monkeys and will have a suitable treatment plan if they continue to appear again.
He also advised people and tourists not to touch, xung or feed monkeys. This behavior can stimulate monkey aggression, leading to unsafety.
In case of detecting monkeys showing unusual signs, people need to quickly report to local authorities or the Forest Protection force for timely handling.
