The zoo's Alyn Cairns said: "We think what has happened is that the trees in their enclosure have been weakened by the storms and so they've been able to break them and use them as a ladder to get out.<doc-sep>Chimpanzees used branches felled by a storm to escape from their zoo enclosure, in front of witnesses, who filmed the whole episode. This was the second escape in as many months from Belfast zoo, after a red panda escaped in January and was found in a garden less than a mile away. Visitors said they saw the escaped chimps emerge from the bushes on to a path, as others sat on top of their enclosure wall. Zookeeper Alyn Cairns blamed the recent storm for the escape, but told the BBC that the chimpanzees did not enjoy their taste of freedom. He said: "They’re intelligent primates and know they’re not supposed to be out of their enclosure, so got back in themselves." Danielle Monaghan, who was at the zoo with her two children, partner and his young nieces, said she was worried about safety issues. She said: "I was petrified, obviously, having the kids, and I tried not to show fear but inside I was a bit like: what happens if it attacks us or tries to take the kids or runs over?" Elaine Monaghan's grandchildren were at the zoo at the time. She told ITV: "Why weren’t the enclosures checked? This could have ended very badly."<doc-sep>Screenshot : Danielle Monaghan ( Facebook ) Some incredibly mischievous chimps put on quite a display for visitors at the Belfast Zoo over the weekend by attempting a big break from their enclosure—a daring effort that was captured on video as one managed to get beyond a wall. Advertisement Video shared to Facebook by Danielle Monaghan—who was at the zoo with her family and spoke with the BBC about the incident—showed the animals managing to fashion a kind of ladder out of a tree branch before scaling it and posting up on their enclosure wall. Another video shared to Monaghan’s page shows one of the animals sauntering across a path following its successful breakout . Monaghan said that while she initially feared that the animal might attack their group, the chimp turned out to be pretty chill. In fact, Chantal Baxter—who was also present during the escape—told the BBC that when her child tried to yell at one, “I think she scared it and it did sort of make its way back up the hill.” This tracks, as I can’t imagine I’d very much enjoy being screamed at by a strange child either . Zoo manager Alyn Cairns told the BBC that recent storms may have made branches on trees in the chimps’ area more susceptible to breaking, allowing them “to break them and use them as a ladder to get out.” Though as the BBC noted separately Sunday, the incident is the second breakout the zoo has seen this year after an endangered red panda got out of its pen in January due to an apparent electrical failure. We’ve reached out to the Belfast Zoo about the attempted breakout and will update this post if we hear back. [BBC]<doc-sep>Chimpanzees made an improvised ladder out of fallen tree branches to escape from their enclosure at Belfast Zoo. The animals were caught on video climbing over the wall and walking calmly around the attraction in Northern Ireland on Saturday. One adult chimpanzee passed just feet from four children enjoying a family trip to the zoo. Manager Alyn Cairns said the chimpanzees soon returned to the enclosure of their own accord. “They’re intelligent primates and know they’re not supposed to be out of their enclosure, so got back in themselves,” Mr Cairns told the BBC. 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Chimpanzees have used a branch to escape from their enclosure at Belfast zoo in the second breach by animals in recent weeks. They took advantage of damage caused by stormy weather to stage a breakout, which visitors caught on film. It comes after a red panda cub called Amber was found in a garden less than a mile from the zoo after it escaped from its enclosure last month. The latest bid for freedom was made by chimps who used a branch as a makeshift ladder and scaled high walls surrounding their pen on Saturday. Visitors described seeing one of the escapees emerge from the bushes on to a path while others were sitting on top of their enclosure wall. In footage posted on social media, a child can be heard exclaiming: “Don’t escape, you bad little gorilla.” Zookeeper Alyn Cairns said trees in the enclosure had been weakened by the storms, allowing the chimps to break them and use them as a ladder to escape. He told the BBC: “They’re intelligent primates and know they’re not supposed to be out of their enclosure, so got back in themselves.” Danielle Monaghan, who was at the zoo with her two children, partner and his young nieces, expressed concern about safety. “I was petrified, obviously, having the kids, and I tried not to show fear but inside I was a bit like: what happens if it attacks us or tries to take the kids or runs over?” she told the BBC. “But we just had to stay calm. It may have been a different story if it had been aggressive but it absolutely wasn’t. It made us feel at ease. We just walked past it and it was absolutely grand.” She said they were in disbelief when they saw one of the chimpanzees start to climb out of its enclosure and ended up a foot away when they walked over to take a closer look. A spokesperson for Belfast city council, which runs the zoo, said one chimpanzee left its enclosure for a short time. “Zookeepers were present as the chimpanzee quickly returned from an adjacent wall to the rest of the group inside the enclosure,” it said.