700,000 bees removed from Florida home

[Kadie]

700,000 bees removed from Florida home

Copyright © 2004 AP Online
This story was published Wednesday, June 9th, 2004

The Associated Press

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) - Lake Worth resident Norm Gitzen didn't mind the more than half-million bees living in the roof of his house until recently. But when the bees started coming into the house, stinging him and his nephew, his love of that cohabitation changed.

Local beekeepers started removing at least 700,000 bees from a tower above his breakfast nook on Tuesday, filling four buckets with honey weighing close to 65 pounds.

"This will become a fantastic nuisance ... because they will grow and grow," said Palm Beach County Beekeepers Association President Ute Hartmann.

The weight of the hives could collapse Gitzen's roof, while the honey could attract ants and rodents, Hartmann said.

Gitzen said at first the bees were "kind of mesmerizing," and he often sweetened his morning coffee with honey dripping from the hives.

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