'Bunkie Monkey' land sale almost dead

Monkeys and apes destined for zoos and research labs will apparently not be held in a former school while awaiting transport to those facilities.

"It appears that deal is 90 percent dead," Superintendent Blaine Dauzat told the School Board's Building & Lands Committee on March 16. "The buyer has been getting some pressure, some threats from PETA, and would prefer to back out of the deal."

Jeffery Quebedeaux, owner of Quebedeaux Transport in Grand Coteau, had agreed to purchase the former special education center between Bunkie and Evergreen -- last used as a parish prison -- for $287,000. The School Board approved the sale at its Dec. 1 meeting

PETA -- People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals -- is an animal rights group that has been vehemently critical of the use of apes and monkeys in medical research labs, including the University of Louisiana-Lafayette New Iberia Research Center .

The last time PETA was involved in an Avoyelles Parish issue was in 2014 when it threatened to sue the Village of Moreauville if it did not repeal a ban on pit bulls, Rottweilers and other breeds of dogs considered inherently vicious. The animal rights activists won that staring contest as well when Moreauville aldermen blinked and rescinded the ordinance.

PETA COMMENTS

However, PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo said the organization's issue with Quebedeaux has nothing to do with Avoyelles Parish or the old school.

"PETA opposes the use of monkeys and all animals in experiments as it’s both cruel and unnecessary in the age of organs-on-a-chip and super computers," Guillermo said. "Confining animals to barren cages and infecting them with disease, addicting them to street drugs or cutting into their skulls is archaic and on its way out.

"We know of Quebedeaux Transport through an incident in New Jersey in which, allegedly, one of their trucks with monkeys in it caught fire," Guillermo continued. "We have never heard of the school or that Quebedeaux planned to purchase that property or any other."

The incident in question is apparently the one in September when a pickup truck hauling a trailer filled with monkeys caught fire on I-287 near Bridgewater, N.J. , as reported by Alexis Tarrazi of Patch.Com online news.

No monkeys, or people, were injured in that incident.

North Branch Volunteer Fire Company firefighters responded quickly and were able to keep the fire from spreading to the trailer. The 2006 Chevrolet pickup was towed from the scene.

Police did not know how many monkeys were in the trailer, but were assured that all of the animals were accounted for."

New Jersey State Police Sgt. Philip Curry said the monkeys were being transported from Louisiana and "after the truck was towed, the monkeys were relayed to wherever they were going."

DISCUSSIONS CONTINUE

Dauzat said discussions with Quebedeaux are still ongoing, but there is apparently no legal pressure the board can use to force Quebedeaux to honor the deal.

Board member Aimee Dauzat questioned why this particular site would no longer be acceptable.

"He will have to have a similar facility somewhere," she said.

Quebedeaux did not return numerous calls over the past week and dating back to his agreement to purchase the site in December.

District Attorney Charles Riddle, who has been involved in discussions with Quebedeaux on the matter, said the sale's publicity attracted animal rights groups' attention. He said Quebedeaux indicated he may revisit the sale later.

"He will still be in business, but he has decided not to expand at this time," Riddle said.

ROLE IN COVID VACCINE

The operation planned for the former school/prison site was not a research lab itself, but merely a "way station" or holding facility for primates awaiting sale and transportation to zoos and labs, such as the University of Louisiana-Lafayette New Iberia Research Center.

The ULL center played a key role in the development of the Pfizer vaccine, the first COVID-19 vaccine approved to combat the spread of the virus that has killed over 10,000 Louisianans, including 121 in Avoyelles Parish, over the past year.

NIRC Director Dr. Francois Villinger said the quest to find an effective vaccine for humans began at NIRC.

Operations such as Quebedeaux's are an important part of that process.

"We are so privileged to have been on the front lines of the fight against the pandemic," NIRC Research Director Jane Fontenot said. "It's very rewarding."

The research center is currently involved in eight COVID-related vaccine or therapeutic drug studies. In the past it has been involved in research to prevent/cure flu, Zika, Ebola and other infectious diseases.

The 100-acre complex has more than 8,500 animals, making it the largest primate research center in the country.

NIRC's part in the development of the Pfizer vaccine involved administering the vaccine to the test subjects and monitoring them for any ill-effects from the vaccine -- such as fever, loss of appetite, pain, etc.

The monkeys were then transported to a more-secure research center in San Antonio where they were exposed to the virus. The results showed the vaccine was effective in protecting the immunized monkeys from infection.

ULL Vice President Ramesh Kolloru, who heads the university's research, innovation and economic development programs, said Pfizer's past relationship with NIRC was a major reason the vaccine was developed as soon as it was.

“The relationships we’ve nurtured over the decades enabled us to be a part of this historic answer to a global challenge,” he added.

BACK ON THE MARKET

The loss of this sale means the School Board now has two closed schools standing vacant and unused. In addition to this one, the former Carver High/Bunkie Middle buildings are still on the market.

A proposed land swap with the City of Bunkie -- exchanging the school property for the city-owned baseball park -- has some support on the City Council but has not gained much traction since it was presented several months ago.

All other former schools are currently being leased and are in use.