Three Deaths from Bee Stings Already... Fire Agency Issues 'Warning'

Average Annual Deaths of 9.7 Over 3 Years

As bee sting incidents have rapidly increased in the fourth week of July, the National Fire Agency announced on the 1st that it issued a bee sting accident "advisory" at 9 a.m. on the 31st of last month.

This year, the number of deaths caused by bee stings has already reached three, and with the end of the rainy season and the start of the peak vacation period, special caution is required during outdoor activities.

The bee sting accident forecasting system is an alert system operated by the National Fire Agency to prevent casualties, based on bee sting accident statistics from the past three years between July and October, when the hornet population rapidly increases and their activity intensifies.

Looking at the casualty status, last year alone, 11 people died from bee stings, and the number of injured reached 6,439. The most casualties occurred in August, and the average annual number of deaths over three years is 9.7.

Bees show greater aggression toward dark-colored clothing and strong perfumes or scented cosmetics, so it is advisable to wear white-colored clothes and wide-brimmed hats during outdoor activities and avoid strong perfumes or scented cosmetics.

Also, if you come into contact with a beehive, cover your head and quickly move at least 20 meters away. If stung by a bee, promptly remove the stinger, disinfect or wash the affected area with clean water, and apply a cold pack to relieve pain.

However, if an allergic shock caused by bee venom occurs, symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and difficulty breathing may accompany it, so you must immediately call 119 and receive hospital treatment.

Kim Hak-geun, head of the Rescue Division at the National Fire Agency, said, “With the issuance of the bee sting accident advisory, special caution is required against the threat of bees during outdoor activities anytime and anywhere,” and added, “The toxicity of hornets is much stronger than we think, so if an allergic reaction causes ‘anaphylactic shock’ after a bee sting, death can occur within an hour,” urging people to promptly call 119.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.