Two dogs are clinging to life in Chula Vista after thousands of bees attacked them. A third dog died.
A homeowner on Ocala Avenue says she went outside just before 2 p.m. after hearing her dogs making a noise. She says her dogs were covered in “thousands and thousands” of bees.
“It looked like a tornado of bees. I couldn't even see the backyard at all. The dogs were covered in coats of bees,” said Carissa Musaraca.
4,000 to 6,000 bees swarmed from 50 pounds of honeycomb at about 2 p.m., according to firefighters.
“I wish I could've saved them. I couldn't. They wouldn't let me back there. I was just watching them suffer,” Musaraca said.
Faith had a seizure and died.
The other two dogs, Girl and Boomer, are hooked up to IVs at Otay Pet Vets animal hospital, Musaraca, said.
Local
One may not make it.
Musaraca was stung several times in the head and hands. Several other people were also stung, but no one had serious injuries.
Chula Vista firefighters used foam to kill the bees, which came from a hive behind a backyard fence on Ocala Avenue.
“The bigger the hive gets the more aggressive and more territorial the bees will be,” said Michael Zito from Anthony's Bee Removal Service.
The swarm was likely Africanized bees, Zito said. He says it’s late in the year for a big attack, but Africanized bees can withstand the change of seasons.
“We're seeing more and more activity during fall and winter months now, it seems like every year, and it's probably going to continue to increase that way,” Zito said.
Africanized bees account for 80 percent of San Diego County’s bee population.
