Angry Bees Swarm, Attack Hundreds at Graduation in Pasadena High School Auditorium

A graduation ceremony in the Pasadena High School auditorium Wednesday afternoon was thrown into chaos as a swarm of angry bees attacked several hundred students and audience members.

Pasadena Fire Department officials said the incident occurred about 7 p.m. during the Sierra Madre Middle School graduation ceremony when a bee hive later found outside was disturbed and the bees went on the offensive.

Responding firefighters were initially told up to 30 people were stung, but Fire Dept. spokesperson Lisa Derderian said in the end only four required on-scene treatment. None suffered serous bee sting reactions or was transported to local hospitals.

One 7-year-old buy was stung multiple times, said Fire Dept. spokesperson Lisa Derderian, and at least one firefighter was stung.

“We remained there throughout the graduation to insure no further medical issues and to mitigate the hive using foam,” Derderian said.

Derderian said a beekeeper was called to the scene to manage the swarm.

The beekeeper speculated that since drought makes bees more aggressive, when an influx of people started towards the auditorium it aggravated the bees, she said.