1 dead, 6 injured by bee stings in Chantaburi – VIDEO

A woman is dead and 6 irrigation workers are in hospital after they accidentally disturbed a large nest of bees yesterday while clearing grass on the side of the road in the eastern border province of Chanthaburi. Police learned of the incident in the Laem Sing district yesterday afternoon. A 43 year old woman, identified as Nongnuch Tangman, was pronounced dead at the scene after running into a nearby lake to escape the bees and drowning. Rescue workers say she had been stung dozens of times.

70 year old Chalu Bunbunchu, a coworker of Tangman, told reporters that the group of workers from the Royal Thai Irrigation Department were clearing grass and branches on the roadside. While Nongnuch was cutting branches she failed to notice the huge nest, causing a branch to hit the hive and anger the bees. All 7 were stung multiple times and ran for cover, but Nongnuch took the brunt of the stings. Rescue workers say she died of a combination of the stings and drowning, appearing to have fallen unconscious from the pain and drowned.

Here’s a video of the aftermath of the tragedy. It contains images that may be disturbing to some viewers. Discretion is advised.

The other 6 workers, including Chalu, were taken to hospital for emergency assistance and treatment. Rescue workers say the hive will be safely removed, relocated and handled by trained beekeepers, as it’s in a populated area and officials are afraid others could be injured.

SOURCE: The Pattaya News