A police volunteer was seen to collapse to the ground as he was being attacked and stung more than a hundred times by swarming bees in a harrowing video.
The bees were first seen to descend on a neighborhood in Encino on Monday afternoon, and authorities warned residents to keep indoors with windows and doors closed. Two people, including the volunteer Los Angeles Police Department officer, were repeatedly stung by the bees. Both were taken to hospital.
The Los Angeles Fire Department received a call about a large swarm of bees shortly before 4pm in the West Adlon Road, according to LA Fire Department spokeswoman Margaret Stewart.
The officer, identified only as Gary by his family, was taken to hospital with bee stings and a fractured eye socket after he was attacked while responding to a call of a bee swarm in a hillside area. As he tried to swat away the bees, he tripped and fell to the ground, injuring his face. But the angry bees continued to attack and sting him.
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The incident was captured on video and footage showed Gary twice collapsing to the ground during the incident. The attack was so severe that when he approached a partner officer in an effort to get inside his car, the officer kept the car door closed, fearing for his own safety.
The Mirror reported that he eventually managed to stagger out of the area as emergency services arrived at the scene to tackle the bees and to tend to the wounded officer before taking him to hospital. Professional bee removers were also called in to assist.
According to Fox News, the injured man remained in hospital but was in a stable condition. It was not known where the swarm came from or why they had honed in on the unfortunate police officer. A GoFundMe page launched for the LAPD volunteer to help with his recovery has surpassed its $5,000 target and has so far raised around $14,000.
His family asked for help after Gary was “heartbreakingly featured on television as being overcome by killer bees and falling to the ground with the fire department nearby.” His son Daniel said that the family was struggling to afford the necessary treatment.
Daniel said: “Unfortunately, while his job gets a lot of praise, we recently found out he’ll be on the hook for his own medical expenses through Medicare.”
He added: “So we’re hoping those out there that have any ties to or have been helped by these community officers, or even just want to keep them around and help protect them from harm’s way, can donate to get Gary back on his feet as soon as possible.”
Daniel said that Gary had served as a volunteer for the LAPD for almost 18 years. During this time, he had been a first responder to many incidents, helping to save lives by calling in paramedics to accident scenes, directing traffic around dangerous areas, and even making decisions about when to step in and provide aid.
The victim’s son stressed that the family “honestly don’t know how much all this is going to cost at this point,” however, the fundraiser had reached its goal. Speaking to CBS News later, Daniel said his father was an Air Force veteran and described him as strong-willed, well-trained, independent, friendly, and always willing to lend a helping hand to anyone in need.
He said he was shocked at seeing the video of his father’s attack on TV: “It was gut-wrenching. I couldn’t even believe it. It looked so painful,” he said. At the time, he said he had been shouting at the screen: “Why aren’t people helping? This is ridiculous. Go out, please help.”
But he later added: “It’s easy to criticize after the fact, but at the time, I’m sure everyone was doing the best they can or was not sure what to do, but it was just horrible.”
Bee experts advised against swatting at bees and in instances like this recommended running at least a quarter of a mile to get away.
After the GoFundMe target was passed, Daniel issued an update, stating: “Wow, we are absolutely amazed at the outpouring of well wishes received in the last 24 hours! Thank you all so much! With your help, not only have we surpassed our goal, but we’ve garnered enough attention that we just spoke to Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton! He’s personally guaranteed that the LAPD will now be covering all of Gary’s medical-related expenses not covered by Medicare.”
The money raised would now go towards any uniform and equipment damaged in the incident, legal expenses and rehab. Anything else, Daniel said, would be donated to benefit other LAPD volunteers.
