robin brown

The News Journal

Police call in beekeepers for help handling thousands of bees

The ramp from northbound Del. 896 to northbound I-95 near Newark reopened about 6:50 a.m. Wednesday, more than 12 hours after it was closed when a tractor-trailer crashed and released its cargo of live bees -- an estimated 16 to 20 million of them.

State police cited the driver, Adolpho Guerra, 55, of Miami, Florida, with having an unsafe load. Guerra suffered 50-100 bee stings and was treated at Christiana Hospital for what Sgt. Paul Shavack called minor injuries. Two passengers also were taken to the hospital for treatment of bee stings.

The flatbed tractor-trailer was hauling 460 hives of honeybees from Florida to Maine when the load shifted about 6:10 p.m. on the Del. 896 on-ramp to northbound I-95, overturning onto the guard rail, Shavack said.

DelDOT reported the right lane of northbound I-95 also was closed in the area overnight, but it was reported reopened at 5:45 a.m. Wednesday.

By 7:30 a.m., only a few bees were observed in the area as passing motorists slowed to check out the site.

Tuesday night, troopers had warned motorists of the closed ramp, as well as "transient bee swarms in the area."

The two passengers, men ages 24 from Miami and 25 from Hialeah, Florida, were taken by ambulance to Christiana Hospital, Shavack said. He said both passengers suffered 50-100 stings but he had no update on their treatment Wednesday morning.

Nearly an hour after the truck failed to negotiate the on-ramp curve, Shavack said bee swarms were so massive, "we can't even get close to the truck right now."

The odd cargo spill prompted state police to call in experts.

"We contacted beekeepers to assist," Shavack said, adding that three were advising on the scene.

Instead of trying to round up the bees, he said, they suggested dispersing swarms with water.

So firefighters from the Aetna Hose Hook & Ladder Company of Newark, coordinating with state troopers, began "hosing down the bees," Shavack said.

Within about an hour, hosing made "some progress," but thick swarms continued to buzz around the wreck, he said.

Police had to get rid of the bees before they could remove the tractor-trailer safely, he said.

As the hose-down went on, Shavack noted that the response to the bee release was not impromptu.

"The [emergency] communication center in New Castle County contacted headquarters communication center, and headquarters communication followed the plan that was in place before this occurred," he said.

The "bee swarm removal procedure" included a list of experts to contact, he added.

"We got ahold of one of those bee providers, and he came right out," he said. "He called for additional resources, so that's why there are three on-scene."

As far as the communication center staff members know, Shavack said, "this is the first time we've actually activated the plan."

But they didn't know how long the plan has been in place.

The bee-hosing continued through dusk. The bee experts advised police that "when it's dark, the bees won't fly, the bees will crawl," Shavack said.

With nightfall, he said, the bee handlers could begin examining the crated hives to see if any could be salvaged before the truck was righted and hauled away.

And the fate of the bees?

Their long haul is over.

The salvaging keepers – not identified by police – get to keep them.

"They were authorized to do that by the trucking company," Shavack said.

No estimate was available of the full bee cargo's value or the count and value of those being salvaged.

Reporter Damian Giletto contributed to this story.

Contact robin brown at (302) 324-2856 or rbrown@delawareonline.com. Find her on Facebook and follow her on Twitter @rbrowndelaware.