Swarm of angry bees forces cops to shut down NYC block
A confused swarm of bees invaded a work van on East 47th Street in Midtown on Friday, causing police to shut down a block until they could get their beekeeper to get rid of them, witnesses said.
The incident started at about 11 a.m., when thousands of honeybees suddenly descended upon a yellow ServiceMaster work van that was parked between Fifth and Madison avenues, witnesses said.
The bees clumped together as they buzzed around all the seams in the van.
Cops quickly shut down the block and told pedestrians to keep to the other side of the street.
Witness Ardell Reilly, who caught some of the action in photos and on video, said the beekeeper told him that drones were probably looking for their queen.
“It was pretty incredible,” he said. “It’s not something you ever expect to see in Midtown Manhattan.”
Beekeeper Darren Mays, who works for the NYPD, used a special vacuum to suction about 2,000 bees off of the van, said officials, who added that the critters will be relocated.
Cops reopened the block at about 4 p.m.
