Bees impede efforts at fire

MORRISTOWN — Morristown firefighters found themselves badly outnumbered when 1,000 to 1,500 angry bees emerged in the upstairs of a house where they were battling a chimney fire on Christmas Eve.

On Thursday at 7:46 p.m., the fire department was dispatched to a fire at a residence at 4408 Route 37. The house was occupied by Dorothy Smith, her son, Greg Smith, and her brother, Claude Bayard.

When firefighters arrived, they reported a working structure fire with heavy smoke. They called for mutual aid from the Brier Hill and Heuvelton fire departments.

After arriving, firefighters began exposing the interior of the outside walls on the first floor. When fire crews began removing two exterior chimneys to expose the outside walls, opening a 20-by-15-foot area of wall, firefighters exposed a 4-by-10-foot bee hive. The upset bees attacked the firefighters in the upstairs of the building.

Fire Chief Kevin J. Crosby said the firefighters were surprised when they discovered the massive hive inside the house. Several firefighters were stung by the bees that emerged from the hive.

"They are fine," Mr. Crosby said of the firefighters. "They called down and said there was a problem. It was a huge nest."

But once the bees found themselves outside, they went dormant in the freezing temperatures.

"Once we put the fire out, it got cold," Mr. Crosby said.

After the fire was extinguished, firefighters sealed the hole with salvage covers to prevent any damage to the downstairs living room.

The Morristown fire department turned out 28 firefighters for the call. An additional 50 firemen were supplied by the Brier Hill and Heuvelton departments. Route 37 was closed for about two hours while firefighters battled the blaze.

State Department of Transportation workers, St. Lawrence County Sheriff's Deputies and the Morristown Ladies Auxiliary assisted at the scene.

The cause of the fire was listed as a faulty chimney to the wood stove, according to Mr. Crosby.