Culture

Everyone Loves The 40,000 Bees That Attacked Police Responding To A Single Bee Sting Report

It was a sting operation.

by Rebecca Shaw  23 February 2020
Bee attack

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Police and firefighters who responded to a call about a single bee sting in California found themselves under attack by a swarm of 40,000 bees. 

40, 000 bees…honey, that’s a lot. And that’s how many bees police and firefighters found themselves facing when responding to a report of a bee sting in Pasadena, California. If you’re wondering why they were responding to a report of a single bee sting, you are not alone.

It turns out that even though only one person had been stung, the caller had noticed some more bees buzzing around, and figured they should alert the authorities. And considering the fact that 40,000 bees eventually showed up…they were probably right.

And look, would it have been scary to come across a swarm of bees, and be attacked by them? Yes. Do I feel bad for the handful of people that were stung, including a firefighter who got stung more than 10 times because he couldn’t get back into his truck due to a colleague’s bee allergy? Yes. But because everyone is ok (and have been released from hospital), is it a little bit funny that they responded to a single bee sting and then faced a swarm? Also yes.

Fire Department spokeswoman Lisa Derderian said that upon initial arrival, the firefighters and police weren’t wearing protective gear, unaware of the extent of the swarm. She also said that the bright yellow on their uniforms “didn’t help” because bees are attracted to the bright colour. I’m sorry to say but that is funny!

A beekeeper called to the scene said that the bees were Africanised bees, a common name for a hybrid African honeybee and European honeybee, which gave people another avenue to make fun of police.

It’s unknown what caused the swarm, the bees could have been lying dormant for some time in the building, and been set off a disturbance such as a passing truck, or a person smoking nearby. But some people want to believe the bees set up a sting, enticing the police out so they could attack.

Including unionising.

What isn’t funny is that unfortunately in trying to get the bees to calm down using foam and Co2, some bees were killed, while some buzzed off. But what is funny is this tweet.

Some people aren’t finding it funny in a more broad sense, figuring a swarm of bees is some kind of sign.

Buzzkills.