SEATTLE -- A small monkey escaped from its enclosure at the Woodland Park Zoo Thursday, triggering an evacuation and lockdown of the zoo until workers captured the monkey a short time later.

RAW VIDEO: Workers Capture Escaped Monkey

The male monkey, weighing about 15 pounds, is a newcomer to the zoo. Crews were introducing the monkey to his new exhibit when he managed to get out of the exhibit by swimming through a moat and climbing a wall, reported KIRO 7 reporter Chris Legeros.

After the male Debrazza's monkey escaped from his outdoor exhibit, zoo workers told patrons to evacuate. People were directed to exit through the north gate, one patron told KIRO 7 Eyewitness News.

The monkey was never a threat and had no encounters with anyone, Legeros reported.

A vet staff was able to stop the monkey with a tranquilizer dart about 45 minutes after his escape.

Chopper 7 video showed workers lifting and hauling away a kennel after they captured the animal.

Staff members said he’s going to be OK. They will re-evaluate the exhibit and try to find out exactly how he escaped.

The video showed patrons streaming back into zoo through the south gate minutes later.

The animal had been at the zoo since May 2008, but was introduced for the first time to its outdoor exhibit on Wednesday, the zoo said.

In August 2008, the male, born at Riverbanks Zoo in South Carolina, was introduced to a 6-year-old female DeBrazza's born at Woodland Park Zoo. The two, identified as a breeding pair, have been kept in a behind-the-scenes holding area.

Adult Debrazza's monkeys have black and white fur, weigh about 11 pounds and live in trees. They are native to central Africa.

In 1991, five orangutans slipped though an electronic door and into the open. The zoo was evacuated as the orangutans taunted their would-be captors for hours.