Bees sting Sun City maintenance worker over 2,000 times, fire officials say

PHOENIX — A West Valley golf course maintenance worker was hospitalized after suffering more than 2,000 bee stings Saturday morning, authorities said.

The man, who is in his 50s, was intubated and in critical condition after the incident at Pebblebrook Golf Course in Sun City, the Arizona Fire and Medical Authority said.

The worker was swarmed after he somehow disturbed the bees’ hive, AFMA said, but the circumstances leading up to the attack weren’t clear.

A responding crew member said “we thought it was grass clippings on his face, but as we got closer, we realized those were actually bees,” AFMA said in a press release Monday.

Firefighters put on protective gear sprayed foam on the bees so they could remove the victim from the attack.

The golf course shut down so a beekeeper could tend to the remaining bees.

It was AFMA’s sixth bee incident this year after responding to 15 in 2022, the department said.

Anyone attacked by bees should cover their face and head and make finding shelter their top priority, AFMA said.

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