Incident Involving Bees, Hives Wreaks Havoc On SE OKC Walmart

You can buy all kinds of things at Walmart.

But Saturday morning, a parking lot sale included something you won’t find on shelves; live bee hives.

The person buying the hives was in the process of securing them in his truck when there was an accident.

“He knocked the lid off one or something and the bees came out and they weren’t happy to see him,” beekeeper Jake McDonald said.

Firefighters said there were thousands of them.

"I was told by the bee experts there can be as many as 20,000 bees per hive," Oklahoma City Fire Department District Chief Shane Williams said.

That's right around 60,000 bees.

The swarm sent three people to the hospital with minor injuries, but beekeepers who responded say it's not the biggest bee emergency they've seen.

All seemed to recall the Pauls Valley incident from last year when a tractor-trailer transporting bees crashed, and released the cargo.

“That was pretty intimidating there was a lot a bees,” McDonald said.

McDonald goes on to say proper handling and a better transaction location could've prevented Saturday's accident

The Walmart store and parking lot were evacuated for several hours after the accident, costing the precious business.

But firefighters say it was the safest option available.

The man transferring the bees was sent to the hospital, and had to have his truck towed, firefighters said.

They say it was covered in bee pheromones that would've just attracted them back to the parking lot.