Last Updated: May 11, 2023, 16:54 IST
At least 14 people were severely injured. (Representative Image)
The tragic incident occurred on the Jinotega to San Sebastian de Yali route in Nicaragua, US.
A bus accident claimed the lives of six people, including an 8-year-old girl, after the vehicle crashed into several beehives and was attacked by a swarm of bees. The accident occurred in Nicaragua on Monday during the bus’s hour-long journey from Jinotega to San Sebastián de Yalí in the northwest of the country, as per Daily Mail. Approximately 60 passengers were in the vehicle and at least 45 of them were attacked by the “killer bees”. It is reported the bus lost control owing to a mechanical failure, plummeting it to crash 160 feet down the ravine.
Although all passengers initially survived the bus accident in which the vehicle crashed into a coffee plantation, things took a tragic turn when the disturbance caused by the collision upset a swarm of Africanized bees. The angry bees ended up stinging the passengers, leading to the death of six people, and severe injuries for at least 14 others. Rescue efforts were further hindered by the presence of the bees. Among the injured were four-year-old Justin Rivas and a pregnant woman named Alma Rivas. While some passengers were treated at a local hospital, others had to be transported to a medical center in Jinotega.
Graphic photos and videos assessed by the portal reportedly show multiple painful stings which caused red boil-like marks on the passengers’ bodies. Several paramedics arrived at the accident sight to load the survivors on the city’s pickup truck to transfer them to hospitals. The driver of the bus is identified to be Santas Herrera. The 22-year-old man was driving the vehicle on the El Caracol-La Ric route. The names of the deceased include 19-year-old Kenia Jazmin Soza Bonilla, 84-year-old Reyna Isabel Olivas Montalvan, 32-year-old Dilcia Amparo, 38-year-old Santos Arunlfo Calderon Castellon, 47-year-old Eneyda Torrez Zelaya and her 8-year-old daughter Andrea Carolina.
The National Police’s transit unit has reportedly launched an investigation into the accident. According to a report by the Natural History Museum, Killer bees also known as Africanized bees were given the terrifying nickname for their aggressive behaviour. The bees are found only in South, Central, and North America.