Swarm of 800,000 bees kills Arizona gardener

A man was killed and another injured when they were attacked by a swarm of 800,000 bees in Arizona.

The men were working as part of a four-strong group of gardeners in the border town of Douglas when they set upon on Wednesday, the Arizona Daily Star reported.

The bees emerged when the workers turned on their lawn mowers in the garden of a house belonging to a 90-year-old man, who was unharmed in the incident. As they were assailed by the bees, the four men sought refuge at a house in the next block where the homeowner called the emergency services.

However, one of the victims subsequently collapsed and went into cardiac arrest. Despite attempts by paramedics to treat the 32-year-old at the scene, he was pronounced dead at Cochise Regional Hospital.

“A witness said his face and neck were covered with bees,” Capt. Ray Luzania of the Douglas Fire Department told the newspaper.

One of the other men was treated for more than 100 stings before being sent home, while the other two escaped relatively unharmed.

The huge swam was exterminated with the help of fire-fighters. It had nested in the eaves and attic of the house and was four feet wide by six feet long. It is believed to have been around a decade old.