Truck hauling honeybees rolls over on Oklahoma interstate

PAULS VALLEY, Okla. – A truck hauling honeybees overturned on a busy Oklahoma interstate, sending a swarm of insects onto the highway that was visible a half-mile away.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol says the rollover on Interstate 35 happened Tuesday afternoon near Pauls Valley, about 60 miles south of Oklahoma City.

Lawton television station KSWO reports that witnesses reported seeing the bees from about half a mile away. The station says the truck’s driver was treated and released from a hospital with minor injuries.

Beekeepers captured as many of the insects as they could, but crews set fire to the debris after nightfall because the bees were growing aggressive.

Brian Royal of Royal Bee Supply says the fire was necessary because it was a “serious health hazard” for anyone not wearing a protective suit.

This story was originally published September 30, 2015 at 9:33 AM with the headline "Truck hauling honeybees rolls over on Oklahoma interstate."