An 800,000 bees attack on five people reportedly working on the lawn of a house in Douglas, AZ on Wednesday has left many people raving on the web.
Reports indicate that one man has been pronounced dead after the 800,000 bees attack on 1700 Block of 21st Street Douglas. Four others reportedly sustained serious injuries including multiple bee stings.
The landscapers are members of charity organization DARC, which assists people with disabilities or in need as well as the aged in the town near the Mexican border.
They were reportedly about to assist an elderly man of 90 years mow his lawn before the incident transpired. Reports indicate that the 800,000 bees attack on the group occurred immediately they turned their mowers on. The killer bees left the crew seriously injured as many were stung repeatedly.
"We get calls about bees fairly often but I've never seen anything to this extent," Douglas Fire Chief Mario Novoa said.
When firefighters reached the scene, they found the landscaping crew injured from stings. While the injured men were provided medical care, residents were advised to stay indoors and keep their windows and doors shut.
"Upon our arrival, our units found five patients on the scene that had been stung by the bee," Nova said.
The victims were reportedly rushed via ambulance to the Cochise Regional Hospital. But one of them, who has been identified as Reymundo Moreno, 32, died of cardiac arrest upon arrival.
Reports indicate that Moreno was a Mexican national living in the community and working with DARC.
"This is the first time we have recorded a death in our community from bees," Nova said.
Another victim, who was reportedly stung over a hundred times in the 800,000 bees attack, has also been hospitalized and is in critical condition. Nova revealed that at least "two patients declined transportation and one patient drove herself to the hospital."
Immediately after the Douglas fire department finished clearing the area, an exterminator was on hand to demolish the hive.
Local sources estimate that about 300,000 to 800,000 killer bees may have been living in the massive hive for over 10 years.
"It was probably a good two feet wide by six feet long, stuck right in the rafters of the eaves, in between the ceiling and the attic," according to Jesus Corellla, a pest control expert.
Beekeepers reportedly had to break through some of the house's roof to get to the hive which was between the ceiling and attic of the Arizona house.
The 800,000 bees attack is one of the largest recorded bee attacks in the country. Corella, explaining how aggressive the bees were to the press, said they "were dropping down at me even before I started approaching it. That was before I started spraying and they were dive bombing me, and that's a sign to back off," he said.
