A peaceful road along the US-Canada border became a scene of commotion on Friday when a truck carrying about 250 million honeybees overturned in Washington state. The truck, which had over 31,750 kilograms of active hives, overturned and spilled a cloud of bees into the environment, reported a BBC article.
The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office also quickly issued a public safety alert, cautioning residents to avoid the area. “250 million bees are now loose,” read the Sheriff’s Office’s post on the internet, one that quickly generated fear and intrigue on social media.
Emergency responders, accompanied by over two dozen skilled beekeepers, soon came on the scene in an attempt to bring the situation under control. The scene was like something out of a film disaster, with crews working to gather and soothe the bees.
Authorities explained that the mission was to save the hives by reintroducing the bees back to their queens and re-hiving them in safety. “The mission is to save as much as possible of the bees,” officials stated, explaining that the recovery process may take 24 to 48 hours.
🚨🚦🐝 The strangest traffic jam: A quarter of a billion bees escape to freedom after a truck overturns in #Washington!pic.twitter.com/6VWQ5sK1Qw #USA
🔊 Whatcom County Police in Washington state announced that a truck transporting approximately 250 million bees overturned,…— ⚡️🌎 World News 🌐⚡️ (@ferozwala) May 31, 2025
Bee transport is critical to American agriculture, particularly for pollination of crops. Farmers nationwide routinely lease bee hives to pollinate crops such as nuts, fruits, and vegetables that heavily depend on insect pollinators. This shipment was most likely headed for a farm when the wreck happened.
In the case of such locations as California’s Central Valley, for example, huge almond farms need billions of bees for blooming season. After that brief window is gone, commercial hives are normally relocated to other states for pollinating fruits like apples, pumpkins, and blueberries.
Later in the afternoon, officials praised the beekeeping community for their quick response and cooperation. “By morning, most bees should have returned to their hives,” the Sheriff’s Office confirmed.
