02 September 2023 , 11:10
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A woman was hospitalised after a swarm of bees attacked her and stung her about 60 times.
Sisters Caroline Honeycombe and Jo Dawson were joined by Jo’s eight-year-old daughter and their horse, Blue, as they were attacked by the angry insects while walking in the Channel Island of Jersey on Monday.
One of the sisters and the child attended A&E after the attack, where the 39-year-old was put on a drip. She was thought to have been stung about 60 times while the child had been stung about a dozen times.
Their horse also needed medical attention from a vet after being stung around 80 times. All in all the family suffered more than 150 stings collectively.
Beekeeper Nick Faulkner, who was removing honey at the time of Monday’s attack, has now moved the hives from Mont Huelin in St Ouen, which resulted in a three-day road closure, to make the area safer.
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The woman and her daughter were hospitalised from the stings (Getty Images/iStockphoto)According to the dad of the sisters, the apologetic beekeeper handed over some of his honey to the victims of the attack.
St Ouen Constable Richard Honeycombe said: “Mr Faulkner came around on Tuesday evening with some jars of honey.
“He was terribly apologetic and could not have been nicer. He also said he would happily cover any expenses we’d faced.
“Jo’s face has gone down and Caroline is feeling much better, as is my granddaughter.
“The care at A&E was exemplary and I will be writing to the Health Minister to pass on my sincere thanks. The team there were amazing.
“I’m not sure where the nine hives are moving to, but I’ve been told it has to be at least three miles away, otherwise the bees could return to the original spot.”
People and animals have been stung by the bees on Mont Huelin on several occasions in the past.
Possible reasons for the attack included the fact that the beekeeper was removing honey from the hives at the time, which makes bees naturally aggressive, and the dark colour of the horses.
They are predisposed to defend against dark-coloured animals, such as bears and badgers, which steal their honey in the wild.