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Killer bees attack woman


thedutchiedutch

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A California woman was stung more than 1,000 times and three firefighters were hurt after a swarm of killer bees attacked Thursday afternoon, authorities said.

The 71-year-old woman was completely covered with the hybrid insects, known as Africanized honey bees, when emergency workers responded to the Palm Desert home about 4:40 p.m., authorities said.

Five firefighters were hurt as they cleared the swarm and placed the woman in an ambulance. The victim was taken to a local hospital, where she was recovering from serious injuries.

Two firefighters were treated at the scene, but three were taken to a hospital for minor injuries.

Link to full article : http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/swarm-killer-bees-attack-sting-california-woman-1-000-times-article-1.1714025

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They never breed hybrid Tickle Bees. :(

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Poor woman. I hope she'll be alright.

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The pain of being stung 1000 times must have been horrendous. I hope she recovers well and it would be a double blessing if she didn't remember it when she does.

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Not only painful, but absolutely terrifying.

If you get attacked by a dog, you can see the dog, identify your attacker and see where it is coming from at least.

A swarm of bees? Pain and fear from every angle.

Shudder.

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I am glad she was strong enough to survive that many stings. I feel for her and hope she makes a full recovery.

I'm touched that the bee removal service is removing the bees for free as a public service. One less thing she has to worry about.

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I live in the general area where this woman is, and we hadn't had killer bees as much the media reports. Once a year we receive reports of Africanized bees in our area and we're told to take precautions when we're near bee hives. Use common sense...don't approach a bee hive, whether they're African or European, and this goes to those with bee sting allergies.

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Hybrid tickle bees!! XD

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This is all a load of crap. I worked many years with my GrandDaddy who was the first beekeeper in the Fort Myers, Florida area. Bees has been in our family for over 150 years and I've been stung many times in my life. I remember waking up with stingers in my ear lobes when working with my GrandDaddy over the summers.

These africanized bees have always been in Florida according to my granddaddy. When the news started talking about it, they were just scaring people into thinking all bees were bad, in result, we have a large dieing bee population. My granddaddy was the guy everyone went to when they had a hive of angry bees hovering on their property (bees generally make hives in your water systems). he'd go in with no bee suit or nothing and take the bees and bring them back to his honey farm and make hives out of them. Even the so called "killer bee's" he would take back to the farm and make hives out of them. He'd always say it was BS, he'd always say every hive is different, some are very aggressive and other are very weak in general.

I remember the news interviewed him after he took out a "killer" bee hive and they butchered up the entire interview, in result really p***ed my granddaddy off and he told the news that he'd never do another interview with them again. He really wanted to educate people and let them know that bees are not aggerssive by nature but they do protect what is theirs, just like any other creature. He'd always tell people do not spray chemicals on bees, as they can easily spread the chemicals to other hives when they are pollinating.

Bees are not scary, they are beautiful creatures and their goal is not to sting humans. So I encourage everyone, if you seen bees near your house, do not be scared, just go on about your business and do not get too close to their hive.

BTW, my GrandDaddy passed away 3 years ago on January 1st, he was a lifetime member of the Tropical Lodge #56, Free & Accepted Masons. He had 6 children, as well as 14 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.

Update: Sorry I forgot to mention this but I clearly remember my GrandDaddy showing me a hive of bees that he said afterwards were killer bees. I asked him "why were they not being aggressive" and he replied "I've domesticated them by giving them plenty of palmetto's trees to pollinate year round." Just one of the memories I have of my GrandDaddy. Thanks for listening!

Edited by xstortionist
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This is all a load of crap. I worked many years with my GrandDaddy who was the first beekeeper in the Fort Myers, Florida area. Bees has been in our family for over 150 years and I've been stung many times in my life. I remember waking up with stingers in my ear lobes when working with my GrandDaddy over the summers.

These africanized bees have always been in Florida according to my granddaddy. When the news started talking about it, they were just scaring people into thinking all bees were bad, in result, we have a large dieing bee population. My granddaddy was the guy everyone went to when they had a hive of angry bees hovering on their property (bees generally make hives in your water systems). he'd go in with no bee suit or nothing and take the bees and bring them back to his honey farm and make hives out of them. Even the so called "killer bee's" he would take back to the farm and make hives out of them. He'd always say it was BS, he'd always say every hive is different, some are very aggressive and other are very weak in general.

I remember the news interviewed him after he took out a "killer" bee hive and they butchered up the entire interview, in result really p***ed my granddaddy off and he told the news that he'd never do another interview with them again. He really wanted to educate people and let them know that bees are not aggerssive by nature but they do protect what is theirs, just like any other creature. He'd always tell people do not spray chemicals on bees, as they can easily spread the chemicals to other hives when they are pollinating.

Bees are not scary, they are beautiful creatures and their goal is not to sting humans. So I encourage everyone, if you seen bees near your house, do not be scared, just go on about your business and do not get too close to their hive.

BTW, my GrandDaddy passed away 3 years ago on January 1st, he was a lifetime member of the Tropical Lodge #56, Free & Accepted Masons. He had 6 children, as well as 14 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.

Update: Sorry I forgot to mention this but I clearly remember my GrandDaddy showing me a hive of bees that he said afterwards were killer bees. I asked him "why were they not being aggressive" and he replied "I've domesticated them by giving them plenty of palmetto's trees to pollinate year round." Just one of the memories I have of my GrandDaddy. Thanks for listening!

You grandfather may have been a great beekeeper, but Africanized Honeybees have a history in the New World. As I remember, 8 queens were brought here to Brazil and placed in special hives that allowed the worker bees to enter and leave the hive, but which prevented the larger queen bees from escaping. These guards were apparently removed by a workman accidentally and the bees swarmed, escaping into the wild. These wild type African Honeybees were better honey produces and better suited to the tropical climate than their European domesticated cousins. They are all the same species, but with slight genetic variations and they are much more aggressive to cope with African animals like the Honey Badger and also with humans who pilfered honey from their hives. What makes them go nuts is simple Carbon Dioxide which they can detect in the breath of any mammal that gets close to their hive and which they then assume is a threat. I saw a documentary where a man in a beekeepers suit, but breathing through a tube so his exhaled breath was behind him stood right at the entrance to an AHB hive with no effect, then he breathed on the hive and it was like a bomb when off.

The AHBs are There march through south and central America was well documented, expanding in a circle from the escape point until all of South America was covered, except in areas with climates too hostile to bees. They took over and killed the domesticated queens in colonies they encountered and their genetics was not diluted all that much as they went because the AHBs were faster flyers and their queens ended up mating with AHB drones when they swarmed. They came up through Central America and Mexico and finally crossed into the U.S. along the boarder states. Occasionally swarms stowed away in cargo on ships as well. Bees most likely entered the Gulf Coast states and Florida from the desert South West.

But they have "not always been in Florida" it is more likely you grandfather encountered an aggressive hive of European Honeybees. Such hives were usually re-queened with new docile queens or destroyed but it is very unlikely the bees were the Africanized variety.

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BEE Careful!

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I live in the general area where this woman is, and we hadn't had killer bees as much the media reports. Once a year we receive reports of Africanized bees in our area and we're told to take precautions when we're near bee hives. Use common sense...don't approach a bee hive, whether they're African or European, and this goes to those with bee sting allergies.

I agree with you. Prevention is always best.

In this case though, there is really no specification on whether or not the elder woman was aware there was a hive of africanized bees near by.

If the colony was about 90 yards away as the article suggests, that's 270 feet. That's still a good distance away to notice anything unusual, even if you had clear path.

Aggressive behavior is not predictable either. Nothing is mentioned at what triggered the bees to attack. Maybe something else threatened the hive and the swarm just randomly assaulted the first target they found.

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With 1000 bees, you may as well kiss your butt goodbye if you are allergic to bee venom. I carry an EpiPen, but even that would not save someone with 1000 bee stings.

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Yeah, what's up with this.

She's 71-years old and supposedly stung by over 1000 "killer" bee's.

Allergic or not, I would guess a massive infusion of venom, which should kill her.

Perhaps rescue medical was there in time.

Huh... maybe she has an ultra-strong immune system.

Don't know, but I hope she comes out OK.

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You grandfather may have been a great beekeeper, but Africanized Honeybees have a history in the New World. As I remember, 8 queens were brought here to Brazil and placed in special hives that allowed the worker bees to enter and leave the hive, but which prevented the larger queen bees from escaping. These guards were apparently removed by a workman accidentally and the bees swarmed, escaping into the wild. These wild type African Honeybees were better honey produces and better suited to the tropical climate than their European domesticated cousins. They are all the same species, but with slight genetic variations and they are much more aggressive to cope with African animals like the Honey Badger and also with humans who pilfered honey from their hives. What makes them go nuts is simple Carbon Dioxide which they can detect in the breath of any mammal that gets close to their hive and which they then assume is a threat. I saw a documentary where a man in a beekeepers suit, but breathing through a tube so his exhaled breath was behind him stood right at the entrance to an AHB hive with no effect, then he breathed on the hive and it was like a bomb when off.

The AHBs are There march through south and central America was well documented, expanding in a circle from the escape point until all of South America was covered, except in areas with climates too hostile to bees. They took over and killed the domesticated queens in colonies they encountered and their genetics was not diluted all that much as they went because the AHBs were faster flyers and their queens ended up mating with AHB drones when they swarmed. They came up through Central America and Mexico and finally crossed into the U.S. along the boarder states. Occasionally swarms stowed away in cargo on ships as well. Bees most likely entered the Gulf Coast states and Florida from the desert South West.

But they have "not always been in Florida" it is more likely you grandfather encountered an aggressive hive of European Honeybees. Such hives were usually re-queened with new docile queens or destroyed but it is very unlikely the bees were the Africanized variety.

You have no idea what you are talking about and you have no experience in the bee industry. Below is my rebuttal to your ridiculous claims, which are not based off of any facts, nor do you list any sources, in result, your claims are irrelevant.

  • All bees can sense carbon dioxide, in result, when they attack they go after your face, which is always excreating carbon dioxide. This has nothing to do with so called "killer" bees. Get your facts straight.
  • Please explain this "special hive" setup. It just doesn't add up. You have gaurds that apparently removed by a workman accidentally and the bees swarmed? Huh? I'd suspect they'd have warning around the hives if they were indeed special hives... common sense here folks.
  • The comment in regards to "the larger queen bees from escaping" is very laughable. For one, you must realize that without drone bees, the queen will die a nature death within a very short time frame. This story is sounding more horsey as I read it.
  • Then we have this comment "they are much more aggressive to cope with..." - as stated, go talk with a bee keeper who has been doing this for a long time. You will find that there are plenty of european hives that are super aggressive. I've experienced it first hand, I had what felt like an entire hive get into my shirt and got my stomach stung up really bad. People think that all bees are just the same, non aggressive bees... that's simply not true. Every hive is different. Get close to a bee hive and see what happens. You'll be yelling "KILLER BEES!!!!!!".
  • This comment has lie written all over it "queens ended up mating with AHB drones when they swarmed..." ugh, since when did the queens start mating with drones outside of their boundaries? Again, this is all bs that you are spewing based off of readings, not experience. Drones have sex with the queen bee but only within a specific area and the queen will not have sex with the drones outside of their boundaries. So if they are swarming and there are other bees nearby or get caught up in the swarm, the queen will not have sex with the drones... this is ridiculous!

Again, you are spewing BS with no proof or facts backing up your statements. It's all based off of hearsay and opinion... not experience.

Lastly, many of my granddaddy's bee hives were tested by Billy Walker and confirmed to be "killer bee's". My grandfather at the peak of his business had over 10k hives, this was when china was banned for importing honey into America.

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On the radio news they said that there was an accident and one of the two automobiles involved hit a tree that had a large bee's nest in it. I don't think they hit it on purpose.

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You have no idea what you are talking about and you have no experience in the bee industry. Below is my rebuttal to your ridiculous claims, which are not based off of any facts, nor do you list any sources, in result, your claims are irrelevant.

  • All bees can sense carbon dioxide, in result, when they attack they go after your face, which is always excreating carbon dioxide. This has nothing to do with so called "killer" bees. Get your facts straight.
  • Please explain this "special hive" setup. It just doesn't add up. You have gaurds that apparently removed by a workman accidentally and the bees swarmed? Huh? I'd suspect they'd have warning around the hives if they were indeed special hives... common sense here folks.
  • The comment in regards to "the larger queen bees from escaping" is very laughable. For one, you must realize that without drone bees, the queen will die a nature death within a very short time frame. This story is sounding more horsey as I read it.
  • Then we have this comment "they are much more aggressive to cope with..." - as stated, go talk with a bee keeper who has been doing this for a long time. You will find that there are plenty of european hives that are super aggressive. I've experienced it first hand, I had what felt like an entire hive get into my shirt and got my stomach stung up really bad. People think that all bees are just the same, non aggressive bees... that's simply not true. Every hive is different. Get close to a bee hive and see what happens. You'll be yelling "KILLER BEES!!!!!!".
  • This comment has lie written all over it "queens ended up mating with AHB drones when they swarmed..." ugh, since when did the queens start mating with drones outside of their boundaries? Again, this is all bs that you are spewing based off of readings, not experience. Drones have sex with the queen bee but only within a specific area and the queen will not have sex with the drones outside of their boundaries. So if they are swarming and there are other bees nearby or get caught up in the swarm, the queen will not have sex with the drones... this is ridiculous!

Again, you are spewing BS with no proof or facts backing up your statements. It's all based off of hearsay and opinion... not experience.

Lastly, many of my granddaddy's bee hives were tested by Billy Walker and confirmed to be "killer bee's". My grandfather at the peak of his business had over 10k hives, this was when china was banned for importing honey into America.

While Wikipedia is not the best source for material, here is an article on Africanized Honeybees, including their distribution timetable:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Africanized_bee

Also the University of Georgia College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences:

http://www.caes.uga.edu/Publications/pubDetail.cfm?pk_id=6912

You are, of course, free to believe whatever you want.

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She must be a tough old bird to survive all those stings. hope she pulls through, that's a hell of a lick to take. I would have died long before 1000 stings. (deathly allergic). Just goes to show that the human body is capable of withstanding incredible punishment, and still live on.

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You know, something just doesn't seem right.

Perhaps an estimated 1000 bee's were swarming her, but, perhaps only got stung by ten or so.

After all, each bees dies after stinging(the process rips-out their abdomen) and use the least amount of "stinging" to chase-off the threat yet maintain a healthy defensive colony.

1000 bees stinging seems like "overkill" for the bees. As they will die.

I don't know. This just confuses me. Both on the supposed amount of bee stings, and why a colony would do such a massive suicide mission in this type of case. Not to mention the 71-year survived, which is strange enough in itself.

Maybe Nature with aggressive bees are different and don't die after a sting. Don't know.

Curious story to be sure.

Edited by pallidin
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Get Well Soon :tsu:

why is it that this woman survived such a major ordeal, and someone somewhere dies from such a little minor incident???

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You know, something just doesn't seem right.

Perhaps an estimated 1000 bee's were swarming her, but, perhaps only got stung by ten or so.

After all, each bees dies after stinging(the process rips-out their abdomen) and use the least amount of "stinging" to chase-off the threat yet maintain a healthy defensive colony.

1000 bees stinging seems like "overkill" for the bees. As they will die.

I don't know. This just confuses me. Both on the supposed amount of bee stings, and why a colony would do such a massive suicide mission in this type of case. Not to mention the 71-year survived, which is strange enough in itself.

Maybe Nature with aggressive bees are different and don't die after a sting. Don't know.

Curious story to be sure.

strtikes me as a bit exaggerated as well.
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Get Well Soon :tsu:

why is it that this woman survived such a major ordeal, and someone somewhere dies from such a little minor incident???

it just wasn't time for her to go yet.
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