Michigan Truck Hauling 50 Million Bees Crashes, Unleashing Swarm

A truck hauling upwards of 50 million bees overturned last week on a Northern Michigan road, unleashing a massive swarm of bees. Nearby residents were warned to keep their windows and doors shut as some of the truck's contents was set free.

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By the way, I included the image above because this story reminded me of the day a massive beehive at our house stopped us in our tracks.

Massive Bee Escape

It's estimated that several hundred thousand bees were set free. Charles Vondra is the Charlevoix County Sheriff. He's apparently a man of few words.

“There was a very large swarm,” he said.

The incident occurred last Wednesday afternoon in Boyne City, about 15 miles south of Petoskey. The truck overturned on rural Jaquay Road in Charlevoix County. Local firefighters in the area had to spray water on the bees that remained in the vehicle in order to keep them cool during last week's extreme Michigan weather.

The Solution:  Bees Rescued

Beekeepers had to be summoned to the area and by the end of the day on Wednesday, they were able to place the remaining boxes of beehives that remained intact onto trucks in order for them to be hauled away.

Empty bee boxes were also placed at the scene in order to attract any bees that had escaped.

Here's the Best Part:

News reports indicate that no area residents reported that they had been stung by any of the escaped bees. Authorities did, however, say that some of the beekeepers who came to rescue the bees that remained on the truck did report a few bee stings.