A chimpanzee's escape from a Central Texas research facility Wednesday that led to the animal's shooting death will be investigated, authorities said Thursday.

Erin Ochoa/KVUE News

The chimpanzee escaped from an area inside the M.D. Anderson research facility.

The 18-year-old chimp was in a corral at the Michale E. Keeling Center for Comparative Medicine and Research -- an M.D. Anderson facility -- in Bastrop.

Officials say the chimp used some sort of object to help it jump over the 16-foot high fence surrounding the corral. Someone saw the chimp escape, and a group spent 30 to 45 minutes trying to capture the animal. When they finally reached him, he was outside the 380-acre campus.

Officials say a tranquilizer was fired, but they could not comment on why the chimp was shot and killed. An investigation was underway.

Staff members say the chimp had been used for research in the past but was no longer being used.

Counselors were on hand to help staff deal with the incident.

This is the second time a chimpanzee has escaped from the facility within the past six months, and the group PETA called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to investigate the lab, claiming that the incident violates the federal Animal Welfare Act.

In November 2007, a 17-year-old male chimpanzee named "Jake" and two others escaped an enclosure. While two of the chimps were quickly captured, Jake was missing for several hours before a search team found and sedated him.

Officials said Jake may have been left in an unsecured area.