ATTLEBOROUGH, Mass. --
An Attleborough woman was in the hospital Tuesday after she was stung hundreds of times by yellow jackets or wasps this weekend.
A 53-year-old woman apparently fell onto a nest outside her Division Street home and the insects swarmed over her entire torso, eventually stinging her more than 500 times, officials said.
"Firefighters found the victim lying on the ground in the backyard. They say she was covered in bees from her head to her toes," Police Chief Scott Lachance said. "I don't think she was coherent. So I don't think she was doing anything but screaming."
Firefighters used a carbon dioxide chemical fire extinguisher to try to blast the swarm of insects away. Three firefighters were treated for stings.
Paramedics in the ambulance and emergency room personnel at Sturdy Memorial Hospital also had to deal with angry bugs.
"They took the lady, kind of ran across the street, carried her, put her in the ambulance and closed the doors. When they got in the back of the truck, some of the bees were recovering. There were bees inside of her clothes," Lachance said.
Firefighters went back to locate the hive, but couldn't find it. They believe it is underground.
The woman's neighbors said they didn’t think the area had more wasps or bees than other neighborhoods.
"I'm outside all the time. We have a pool, kids. I've been bit, there are bees -- but not too often," neighbor Ed Copes said.
The woman remained hospitalized Tuesday.
Copyright 2010 by TheBostonChannel.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
