Latanja Levine of Spring, Texas, got an unpleasant surprise when roofers came to make a routine repair on her house.
The roofers discovered a bee infestation under her roof and had to suspend work until the bees were removed. Professional beekeepers were called in to attempt to remove the bees without killing them. Since 2016, honey bees have been recognized as an endangered species and are entitled to federal protection.
Levine estimates that 50,000 bees were removed from the house, and the beekeepers were able to remove most of the beehive, as well as sealing the house to make sure bees could not reenter.
However, they were not able to remove the queen bee. When the beekeepers and roofers finished their work, Levine returned to her home — only to find that honey was leaking through the walls of her home from what was left of the hive. Honey was pouring down the walls in trickles and puddling on the floor. “I’m mopping it up,” Levine said.
“The curtains are probably ruined. You can see it’s coming through cracks and crevices in the crown molding.” Besides the stickiness and stains, honeycomb left in a house structure can attract more bees or other insects, which can further damage the house. Complete removal of all honey and beeswax is the only way to avoid this.
“I’d like any help with a solution, because I don’t know what to do,” says Levine.
