THE scene of a vicious attack by angry bees on three Islanders and their horses on Monday is now closed to allow the nearby hives to be moved.
Sisters Caroline Honeycombe and Jo Dawson, and Jo’s eight-year-old daughter, were stung multiple times walking down Mont Huelin in St Ouen, along with Miss Honeycombe’s horse Blue.
The other ponies bolted and so avoided the brunt of the attack.
Miss Honeycombe was stung around 60 times and her niece around a dozen. Both attended the Emergency Department, where Miss Honeycombe was put on a drip.
Blue was stung around 80 times and has received several visits from the vet.
The sisters’ father, St Ouen Constable Richard Honeycombe, said that the parish had closed Mont Huelin on Wednesday night and the winding hill, which leads up from L’Etacq, would not reopen until Saturday.
This was to give the beekeeper, Nick Faulkner, ample time to move the hives, he said.
Mr Honeycombe said: ‘I’m not sure where the nine hives are moving to, but I’ve been told it has to be at least three miles away, otherwise the bees could return to the original spot.’
He added: ‘Mr Faulkner came around on Tuesday evening with some jars of honey.
‘He was terribly apologetic and could not have been nicer.
‘He also said he would happily cover any expenses we’d faced.
‘Jo’s face has gone down and Caroline is feeling much better, as is my granddaughter.
‘The care at A&E was exemplary and I will be writing to the Health Minister to pass on my sincere thanks.
‘The team there was amazing.’
Islanders and animals have been stung by the bees on Mont Huelin on several occasions in the past.
On Wednesday, the JEP reported that possible reasons for Monday’s bee attack included the fact that the beekeeper was removing honey from the hives at the time, which makes bees naturally aggressive, and the dark colour of the horses.
This is because bees are predisposed to defend against dark-coloured animals, such as bears and badgers, which steal their honey in the wild.
