While prepping a site for a paving job in Riverside, California, earlier this week, a construction crew was swarmed and stung by hundreds of bees, killing one of the workers.
According to a report from the Riverside Press-Enterprise, 49-year-old worker Douglas Queen was killed when he and two other men at the site came across and disturbed an underground hive Monday morning.
The hive was located in a field being graded for a McDonald’s parking lot, Riverside Fire Department officials told the paper. At the time of the attack the crew was digging a trench.
One of the other workers was listed in moderate condition at a nearby hospital while the third man was treated at the scene.
The Press-Enterprise has also published a follow-up story on the dangers bees pose to workers and the precautions crews can take while in the field. We’d recommend giving it a look as it contains tips on clothing and how those with known bee allergies should respond to such an attack.
