An Arizona man died as he and his father were attacked by a swarm of killer bees as they prepared to repair a roof in Sierra Vista. Cochise County Sheriff's Department said the Africanized honey bees stung Charlie Pasley, 39, more than 300 times as he carried out repairs to a home in Huachuca City, 160 miles southeast of Phoenix on Sunday.
He died at the scene, according to Reuters.
The two men were working on a roof Sunday when they accidentally disturbed a beehive. When the bees attacked, the father ran into the house while the son tried to fight off the bees outside. The father was stung about 100 times, but his son died trying to fend off the killer bees.
According to reports the father was in stable condition at Sierra Vista Regional Medical.
SheriffÂ’s deputies and firefighters used foam to placate the angry bees. Two emergency workers were stung, but were OK, Carol Capas, spokeswoman for the Cochise County Sheriff's Department, told the Sierra Vista Herald.
The sheriffÂ’s department released a public service announcement warning those living in the area about the swarm.
Reed Booth, a bee expert based in Bisbee, was shocked by the man's death. He said people need to understand the danger of bees. "All of the wild honeybees in Arizona are Africanized bees," he said. "If you have an existing hive, it is a bomb waiting to go off. It's not if — it's when. People don't take it seriously enough." Booth urged anyone who sees a hive around his or her home or neighborhood to immediately contact a bee-removal professional. |