Health Highlights: Oct. 9, 2014

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Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Bee Swarm Kills Man, Critically Injures Another in Arizona

One man was killed and another critically injured Wednesday when landscape workers in southern Arizona were attacked by Africanized bees.

The crew was cutting grass and weeding for a 90-year-old homeowner when they were swarmed by bees from an attic nest believed to hold 800,000 bees. Two other workers and a neighbor also suffered stings, USA Today reported.

It’s not known what triggered the incident or how many bees were involved in the attack that occurred in Douglas, located on the border with Mexico and about 120 miles southeast of Tucson.

The dead man and his critically injured co-worker were with the Douglas ARC, which finds work for people with developmental disabilities, Douglas Fire Chief Mario Novoa said.

After the attack, a four-block area around the house was cordoned off and firefighters in protective bee suits removed part of the eaves and roof and pulled down the ceiling so that an exterminator could kill the bees, USA Today reported.

When it was removed, the 3-by-8-foot nest filled a 55 gallon drum. The nest may have been accumulating for 10 years, according to Novoa.

“There are not many European honey bees left around here, so we treat them all as Africanized bees,” he said, USA Today reported.

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