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Hive with 30K killer bees removed from tree in Texas

HARLINGEN, Texas (KVEO) – Bees are doing more than buzzing in the Rio Grande Valley.

Last weekend, six people were hospitalized after bees attacked about 40 to 50 people near Arroyo City.

Yesterday, professional beetrapper Luis Slayton took down a hive with more than 30,000 killer bees in Harlingen.

“Here’s a swarm I brought down from the tree,” said Slayton. “Right now in the valley we’re going through the 2017 swarm season. What that means is that there’s swarms coming in from Mexico and traveling up,” said Slayton.

With the start of spring, bees are slowly making their presence known.

“Now there’s flowers blooming and it made the Mesquite bloom – all are natural shrubs, and trees are blooming all at the same time with the citrus so there’s an abundance of nectar,” said Slayton.

If you see a swarm of bees, contact a professional beekeeper or pest control. Call 911 if you’re getting attacked.

“There’s three reasons why people get attacked: one of them is a chance occurrence that they run into a bee hive they didn’t know was there, another one is negligence because the homeowner didn’t take care of a beehive that’s been there for a while, and the third is because they pestered a hive that’s been there for awhile,” said Slayton.

In order to prevent a bee attack, Slayton offers a simple tip that could make all the difference.

“Sit in your vehicle, turn it on, crank your windows up, crank your air condition up, lower your windows about that much and the bees will leave you alone with a change of temperature,” said Slayton.

Slayton said if you see a beehive, don’t try to take care of it yourself but call a professional right away.

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