What not to say to the media

The Scotsman newspaper today tells a story about a couple being “trapped in their home by 80,000 bees”. Actually, a swarm took up residence in their compost bin.

Beekeeper, John Grieve, is reported to have said:

“This couple were very lucky. They could have walked down there and disturbed the swarm without realising. That’s how close they were to an accident. At the moment these bees are pretty aggressive as they are starving. They are very, very dangerous. Anaphylactic shock is becoming more and more common and it’s a shocking sight.”

Perhaps Mr Grieve needs a media relations training session (unless of course he works for a pest control company — in which he's done a mighty fine job!)

Fortunately, the local council put the incident in perspective:

A spokesman for East Lothian Council said swarming bees were not a major concern in the area at the moment.