Police west of Toronto warned drivers to keep their car windows closed on Wednesday after boxes containing 5 million bees fell from a truck.
Halton police said they received a call around 6:15 a.m. that boxes of bees had fallen from a truck on the Guelph Line in Burlington, Ont., just west of Toronto.
It was “an extremely shocking image,” said Officer Ryan Anderson.
“There were boxes literally on the road and swarms of bees were flying everywhere,” he said. “The first beekeeper to arrive would have received several stings.”
Police advised drivers to close their windows when passing and pedestrians to avoid the area.
About an hour after police posted a notice on social media, several beekeepers contacted police and offered to help. Ultimately, six or seven arrived, Anderson added.
Around 9:15 a.m., police said almost all of the 5 million bees had been safely collected and the boxes were being removed. They left a few boxes so that the uncollected bees could return there on their own.
In summer, a bee colony numbers between 50,000 and 80,000 bees, according to the Honey Council of Canada.
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