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By Marni Rose McFall
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A man in California was stung more than 200 times by a swarm of bees that also killed two of his horses.
Antonio Moreno was tending to his horses in Jurupa Valley last Friday when a swarm of the winged insects attacked him and his animals.
"I am strong. They could have killed me. The doctor told me it's a miracle that I'm alive," Moreno told ABC7, in Spanish.
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The attack happened as Moreno and his 12-year-old son went to feed their horses. His son pointed out that a bee was stinging one of the horses, so he went to help the animal, but soon after a swarm of bees descended on Moreno and on the horses.
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"We fled to the street and took the horses with us, but the bees followed us onto the street and kept stinging me," Moreno told ABC7.
Firefighters from the CalRiverside department arrived after the owner of the property called 911.
In a statement shared with Newsweek, a spokesperson for the Riverside County Fire Department said: "The first arriving engine reported two patients and four horses being swarmed. Both patients were transported, one in serious condition and one in moderate condition, to local area hospitals via ground ambulance.
"One horse did perish at the scene, and the other three horses were treated by a private veterinarian on-scene. The firefighters used a mix of foam and water to quell the swarm of bees so they could treat the patients."
Serious Injuries
While his son was not seriously injured in the attack, Moreno was left in a critical condition, and over 200 stingers were removed from the back of his neck and arms.
"Everything began to close up, my throat closed up and my heart felt like it was going to explode," Moreno explained to the news outlet. "My chest hurt so much, everything hurt."
"People need to pay more attention and be careful with bees because they can be dangerous," Moreno warned. He has now learned that he is allergic to bees and will need to carry an EpiPen with him.
Between 5 percent and 7.5 percent of Americans are hypersensitive to insect stings. That could put them at risk of experiencing anaphylactic shock if they are stung by a bee or a wasp, according to the charity BeeAware.
Every year, 60 deaths in America are related to severe bee sting reactions, and 16 million Americans live with the bee allergy that could be life threatening. Some 220,000 ER visits happen every year for bee sting-related anaphylaxis, according to BeeAware.
There are about 1,600 wild bee species that are native to California, according to data from Environment America.
Bee attacks in California are rare, but more frequent in the summer months. One particularly dangerous type is the Africanized honey bee.
The sting of an Africanized honey bee is more toxic than most, and they are more aggressive. A person can receive 10 or more times as many stings if they disturb an Africanized honey bee colony, according to the California Department of Public Health.
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Update 08/13/24, 11:46 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include comment from the Riverside County Fire Department.
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