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Canada Truck Crash Turns Honeybee Cargo into Sting Operation
by
Anne Szustek
A truck jackknifed on the Trans-Canada Highway Monday morning, releasing 12 million honeybees in the northwest corner of New Brunswick.
30-Second Summary
A flatbed trailer was transporting 330 crates of bees to Ontario back from northeastern New Brunswick, where they had been used to pollinate commercial blueberries. The cargo was jostled as the truck was heading up a highway ramp near St. Leonard, New Brunswick around 6 a.m. Atlantic Daylight Time.
The subsequent shift in weight tipped the truck, and the crates crashed to the pavement, releasing many of the bees. Cleanup efforts seemed to inspire the bees still in crates to escape.
Local beekeeper Edmond Bellefleur said, “Once they started to open the netting and [were] unpacking the hives one by one and putting them on pallets, then they really started to fly, and they got nasty.”
Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sgt. Derek Strong said that the rainy weather near the site of the accident helped contain the spilled bees at first. But as the weather cleared the bees became more mobile and “began to swarm and sting the workers more,” forcing the workers to use smokers and fire hoses. Strong advised anyone who is allergic to bee stings to stay away from the area.
Westbound lanes of the Trans-Canadian Highway were closed during the clean-up efforts. The driver was unharmed during the accident.
Bee spills can mean steep financial losses for agricultural operations. A rig that flipped in Sacramento, Calif. in March released 8 million bees over a state highway. The insects were worth between $75,000 and $80,000.
The subsequent shift in weight tipped the truck, and the crates crashed to the pavement, releasing many of the bees. Cleanup efforts seemed to inspire the bees still in crates to escape.
Local beekeeper Edmond Bellefleur said, “Once they started to open the netting and [were] unpacking the hives one by one and putting them on pallets, then they really started to fly, and they got nasty.”
Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sgt. Derek Strong said that the rainy weather near the site of the accident helped contain the spilled bees at first. But as the weather cleared the bees became more mobile and “began to swarm and sting the workers more,” forcing the workers to use smokers and fire hoses. Strong advised anyone who is allergic to bee stings to stay away from the area.
Westbound lanes of the Trans-Canadian Highway were closed during the clean-up efforts. The driver was unharmed during the accident.
Bee spills can mean steep financial losses for agricultural operations. A rig that flipped in Sacramento, Calif. in March released 8 million bees over a state highway. The insects were worth between $75,000 and $80,000.
‘Millions of bees from overturned truck “get nasty” as they’re moved’
Once captured, the bees will not be moved until after dark, when bees naturally return to their hives. New Brunswick Beekeepers Association Vice President Richard Duplain said that any bees not recaptured will likely die soon, as exposure to the elements can be fatal to the species.
Source: CBC
Background: Previous bee spill
A flipped big rig released 8 million bees over a Sacramento highway on March 16. Bee populations are falling steeply, making the insects a pricy commodity—especially in central California, where they are vital in pollinating almond orchards.
Source: findingDulcinea
Related Topics: Other interesting truck spills
A trailer transporting 14 tons of Oreo Double Stuf brand cookies tipped over I-80 near Morris, Ill., flinging the cookies in their cellophane wrappers over the roadway and median. Kris Habermehl, traffic reporter for Chicago CBS affiliate WBBM, said when checking out the site from his helicopter, “You don’t want to lose your cookies this early in the morning—wait, that didn’t sound right.
Source: findingDulcinea
On April 24, a semi-trailer overturned and spilled Jell-O snacks over I-95 in St. John’s County, Fla. The interstate was shut down as authorities cleaned up the “slippery mess.” The driver was trapped inside the cab, but was rescued and airlifted for injuries.
Source: Orlando, Fla. ABC affiliate WFTV
Truckspills.com claims to be the online home of “odd, strange, interesting, and unbelievable things spilled on the road by trucks.” Among the accidents profiled are a dump of oranges over a highway in southeastern Australia, 2,184 cases of Grolsch Beer spilled on a road in Ontario, and a truck that chucked rotten wieners and other processed meats on I-471 near Cincinnati.
Source: Truckspills.com
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