It seemed like an ordinary afternoon for the residents of Melo, a small urban center in Uruguay, on the border with Brazil, but what happened shortly after shocked the entire community. A swarm of bees consisting of thousands of specimens attacked and stung dozens and dozens of citizens, causing almost 40 people to end up in the hospital.
The bees headed mainly towards cars that were stopped in city traffic, managing to sneak between one window and another and sting the unfortunate ones on duty. An almost cinematic scene witnessed by the inhabitants of Melo, which is reminiscent in some ways of Hitchcockian scripts: dozens of people fleeing the bees that tried to take refuge in their homes or passing stores.
In the end, 37 people ended up in hospital, including eight children, stung dozens of times as they tried to flee on foot. “My son ran like crazy but he was still stung about 15 times – said the mother of one of the hospitalized children – I saw people running desperately, abandoned motorcycles and cars and fled”.
“I had the car windows down when a swarm of bees appeared out of nowhere and entered,” said another witness. The situation was saved by beekeepers who identified the origin of that commotion in two beehives kept, without authorization, by a resident of the region.
Experts removed the hives and made the area safe. It’s not clear why the bees went on the attack, but experts said they may have been stressed by noises such as the sound of a car horn.
Source: Fan Page IT
John Cameron is a journalist at The Nation View specializing in world news and current events, particularly in international politics and diplomacy. With expertise in international relations, he covers a range of topics including conflicts, politics and economic trends.
