Beekeeper to the rescue as Market Lavington villagers take cover from swam of insects (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Beekeeper to the rescue as Market Lavington villagers take cover from swam of insects

12:02pm Monday 6th August 2012 in News By Lewis Cowen

Residents of Market Lavington took shelter from a swarm of bees that engulfed the High Street last Friday.

Passersby took refuge in the sub post office as up to 70,000 bees headed up the street.

Sub postmaster David Dyer said: “I noticed something coming from the direction of White Street which looked like a swarm of locusts. They were everywhere, like a snow storm.

“Several people came into the shop while the bees passed by. I ran upstairs to shut the windows and doors to keep them out. One young lady was walking up the street texting on her phone and hadn’t noticed them.

“Then she looked up and started swatting the air to get rid of them. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Local butcher Mark Douse said: “I noticed the swarm and quickly took refuge in the post office with several other people.”

The swarm settled in a small tree in the Market Place, much to the consternation of local people.

But it was then that fortune came to the rescue. Thomas Morison, from Little Cheverell, happened to be in the butcher’s shop at the time and noticed the commotion.

Mr Morison rang his wife, Caroline, an experienced beekeeper, who was soon on the scene with her apiarist paraphernalia.

She collected some of the swarm in a box which she held upside down, a short distance from the ground, to give the rest of the bees a chance to join their fellows.

After about an hour the bees were collected and taken away to a spare hive that the Morisons have in their garden.

Mrs Morison said: “It’s unusual for bees to swarm this late in the year as they have to be established before winter. I will integrate these bees with my others and they should be able to thrive.

“Swarming bees are not normally aggressive. They become aggressive when they have established a hive and have eggs to protect.”