An NYPD officer removed the swarm from Sunnyside yesterday. (NYPD)
May 28, 2019 By Laura Hanrahan
Sunnyside was buzzing yesterday as NYPD officers removed a swarm of 20,000 bees from the side of a 45th Street building.
The sizable swarm had gathered at 48-02 45 St., between 48th and 50th Avenues, and quickly became a problem for pedestrians trying to walk by the building.
NYPD beekeepers responded to the scene and used a “bee-vac”—a vacuum that safely sucks up the bees—to collect the swarm, which was then transported to a new home in the Hudson Valley.
@NYPD108Pct @NYPDChiefPatrol @NYPDChiefofDept @NYPD104Pct 20k bees safely removed from a building hindering pedestrians from walking on the sidewalk. It’s definitely swarm season in NYC. pic.twitter.com/CuWJ00KA07
— NYPD Bees (@NYPDBees) May 27, 2019
The force’s beekeepers are full duty police officers who have received specialized training and are called on when swarms appear.
According to the NYPD, it’s swarm season for the bees. The season typically lasts from mid-May to late July as temperatures rise and the bees move around looking for a place to cool off.
Sunnyside wasn’t the only neighborhood to be hit by a swarm over the holiday weekend. A group of 8,000 bees also invaded lower Manhattan yesterday near Broadway and Maiden Lane. The specialized NYPD officers responded and similarly removed the bees and transported them to the Hudson Valley.
