A swarm of bees stung a New Hampshire tree cutter several hundred times Thursday as he dangled upside-down mid-air, authorities said.
The unidentified Manchester Parks and Recreation Department worker, who was hospitalized along with someone who attempted to help, was cutting down a tree from his truck’s raised “bucket” when the bees attacked, District Fire Chief Al Poulin said.
He could not escape because he was harnessed to the truck for his safety 10 to 15 feet off the ground, Poulin said, adding that six people suffered stings in the attack.
A fellow worker on the ground heard the man’s screams and lowered the bucket but his colleague fell out and upside down, still held by the harness, in his attempt to escape.
A few area residents, including a 62-year-old man, rushed over to help and were also stung several times, Poulin said.
The parks worker and another person were taken to area hospitals, and both were in stable condition, the fire chief added.
The attack comes on the heels of another such incident in California this week, in which a house cleaner was stung more than 200 times and remains in critical condition.