Camels escape petting zoo at Cedar Point

It was Hump Day all over social media on Wednesday as videos of two camels running around Cedar Point Tuesday went viral.

The camels escaped an enclosure called The Barnyard, which is the petting zoo section of the park.

Videos from one Cedar Point visitor showed the camels running around near visitors.

It is unclear how they got out of their enclosure.

"The camel decided to take a stroll just outside his home but was quickly returned," said Director of Communications Tony Clark.

News 5's Maya Lockett spoke with parkgoers who witnessed the camels roaming around the park, like Ohio State student Justin Garcia.

"They were coming straight at you, and the next thing we were worried about was just getting out of the way. We picked up my little sister, put her over the railing, and me and my dad followed suit," Gacia said.

Garcia captured the chaos on video.

"You can see in the one video the guy almost gets trampled when he's just sitting there in his wheelchair, but I think the camels were just really freaked out and didn't know what they were doing or where they were going," said Garcia.

He said some people were able to pet the camels once they calmed down, but others were trying to hide.

"There was people diving out of the way climbing into the pen with the llamas and alpacas just to get away from them," said Garcia.

PETA Foundation Senior Director of Captive Animal Welfare Debbie Metzler did not find the episode amusing and released this statement about the escaped camels:

No one should be surprised that distressed camels panicked and ran away, hoping to escape a near-constant, chaotic barrage of excessive handling, noisy roller coasters, and screaming parkgoers. PETA is calling on federal authorities to hold Honey Hill Farm accountable for failing to protect these frightened animals—and members of the public who were endangered during their attempts to flee—and urges people everywhere to steer clear of seedy enterprises that exploit vulnerable animals.

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