Austin Bellamy: Ohio man, 20, in coma after being stung by KILLER bees THOUSANDS of times while pruning tree
RIPLEY, OHIO: Tree trimming can a fun activity but who knew it can also cost you your life? Yes, you heard it right. According to a GoFundMe page set up by his family, Austin Bellamy, 20, was trimming branches of a lemon tree and accidentally cut into a bee hive in Ripley, Ohio. The 20-year-old was stung thousands of times by a swarm of African killer bees and swallowed almost 30 of them, and nearly lost his life.
According to the USDA, a person can survive 10 African killer bee stings per pound of their body weight. African killer bees, popularly known as Africanized honey bees, only sting people when they feel threatened. Just one sting can cause tremendous pain and itching, which usually improves on its own. The most stings an adult could endure is around 1,000.
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At the time of the incident, Bellamy's grandmother, Phyllis Edwards, and his uncle, Dustin Edwards, were standing underneath the tree and witnessed the whole incident. As of Tuesday night, Bellamy was on a ventilator in a medically induced coma at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, according to WXIX reports.
“When he started cutting them, that’s when the bees came out, and he tried to anchor himself down, and he couldn’t,” his grandmother told FOX19. “He was hollering, ‘Help! Help me! Help!’ And nobody would help him. I was going to try and climb the ladder to get to Austin," she added.
"I seen how high he was ... but I couldn’t get to him because I was surrounded in bees," she said, adding, "It was impossible to get to Austin through the swarm of bees attacking him."
A firefighter named Craig helped him down from the tree, after which he was rushed to the hospital.
The 20-year-old's mother, Shawna Carter, told WXIX that it looked like her son had a "black blanket on his head down to his neck." "He was just covered in bees," Carter said, adding, "Screaming and yelling, crying for help.".
"When I think of Craig, Craig is a lifesaver. He's Austin's angel. He saved Austin's life," she added, thanking the firefighter who save her son's life.
Bellamy turned 20 on August 7, days before this tragic incident took place. His mother said that when she heard about her son, she passed out.
Bellamy's family informed that he was out of danger and will make a full recovery but will have to remain at the hospital for some more time, according to a report by WCPO 9 News.
