A 71-year-old woman somehow survived being attacked by 75,000 African bees while visiting Palm Desert, California on March 6, according to a report by ABC News.
The woman is currently in critical condition after being stung at least 1,000 times. She was covered head-to-toe with bees at one point, and some of them managed to get inside her mouth.
The bee hive was located in an underground cable box, which was disturbed by a Verizon employee that lifted the lid to the box up, according to ABC.
The woman was saved by "several" firemen who came to her rescue. She is currently being treated for the bee stings, but is expected to survive.
A person can survive 1,500 bee stings, according to the International Business Times.
The incident occurred in Palm Desert, which is 122 miles east of Los Angeles. It was reported at 4:40 p.m.
"You couldn't see her," California Fire Battalion Chief Mark Williams said to the Press Enterprise. "When the first engine company arrived, they described an elderly woman completely covered head-to-toe in bees, as if she was wearing a suit of bees."
The woman was visiting relatives from out of state, and had was getting out of her car when the bees attacked. The relatives "threw a blanket over her" and quickly took her inside the house, according to the International Business Times.
Several firefighters were also stung on their hands, necks and faces. Three were taken to the hospital as well.
"They just went into her car and attacked her," Lance Davis, a local expert, said to the Palm Desert Patch. "They were mad."
Davis used smoke to confuse the bees and then vacuumed them up. The bees were then taken to his hive and will be used by farmers for crop pollination, according to the International Business Times.
"They're quick to anger, and they are relentless in their attack," Davis said. "If it takes the whole hive to protect against an intruder, or someone perceived to be an intruder, they will do it."
African killer bees were first brought to the U.S. in the 1950s to breed them with European bees.
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