White River family escapes bee attack, beloved pet dies
The Davis family is lucky to have escaped largely unharmed after three of them were stung “probably 300 times” when a swarm of bees attacked their dog.
The same is the case for Capt Pieter Smit, who was attacked by a swarm of wasps on January 2 while cleaning his pool, this earned him an evening stay in Mediclinic Nelspruit.
Lyn, John and Jessica Davis, along with Jessica’s fiancé, were sitting on the veranda of the Davis’ White River Country Estate home on December 29 when disaster struck.
Jessica’s dog, Mumbles, went down a bank towards a bush at the bottom of the garden. After being away for a while, they called Mumbles who then came running up covered in bees.
Their first instinct was to go into the pool with Mumbles; apparently that is the worst thing, because the bees just hover. The chairperson of the Lowveld Beekeepers Group, Inge Lotter Austin, confirmed this when Lowvelder asked her whether she had any advice on how to act in a situation like this.
There are a few options, but Lotter Austin said people should not jump into water. “Bees are known to remain where the victim submerged himself/herself and sting every time they come up for air.”
Eventually, without successfully ridding Mumbles of the bees, he ran inside with the insects following him.
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“At this point we realised we needed help and made our way to the outside cottage to escape the bees and to try and call the neighbours,” said Lyn.
In the meantime, their gardener was able to get help from the neighbours, who happened to have two EpiPens that was administered to Jessica and John. From there, they made their way to Kiaat Hospital. They had phoned an ambulance, but Jessica was not doing well and they wanted to get to hospital sooner rather than later.
John and Jessica each had at least 60 stings removed from their faces alone. The paramedic said it is unbelievable that out of three people in an incident like this, none of them went into anaphylactic shock.
“It was a terrible day and we are all devastated about Mumbles. We are very lucky that our neighbours had EpiPens and were able to rush us to hospital,” said Lyn.
Mumbles was taken to the vet, but sadly passed away during the night. He had over 200 stings on his face and ears.
Lotter Austin, who is also a representative of the South African Bee Industry Organisation, gave some pointers on how to escape a situation like the above.
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Firstly, you need to get away as fast as you can, with as little noise and flailing as you can manage – this will alert more bees. Try to cover your head and throat with your shirt or jacket.
“The best place to go to is inside a car. Jump in the car and start it with its fan or air conditioner on high. The bees will immediately try to exit by sitting on the windows. Drive a few hundred metres away and open the windows to let them out. Leave the area, as many bees will still be agitated.”
The second-best place is indoors, even if some bees follow you.
In the event of no vehicles or shelter being available, she suggests going to the densest vegetation and running through it. “Bees can follow for quite a distance, so keep going until you are safe.
“When safe, remove the stingers as soon as you can, but by scraping them off, and not pulling them out.
Medical attention is the next step when you have been stung multiple times. She also suggests taking an antihistamine.
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When, like Mumbles, your animal gets attacked, throw a towel over them, get them inside, and remove the stingers. “Giving them antihistamine like Allergex can buy time to get them to the vet,” said Lotter Austin.
If you see a person or animal being attacked, you can grab a fire extinguisher and spray it in the direction of the person and the bees.
Lastly, Lotter Austin suggests calling a local beekeeper to assist in removing bees if it is a wild colony that has nested close to people. You can call her on 082 821 5011. If her team cannot help immediately, she will be able to source a beekeeper that can.
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