indianexpress.com :: Engineer dies in bee-attack at PGI

Engineer dies in bee-attack at PGI

Express news service

Posted online: Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 0052 hrs IST

Chandigarh, February 27
Panic prevailed at the PGI on Wednesday afternoon as bees went into attack mode. Ashok Bhandari (38), a junior engineer with the Public Health wing of the UT administration, died and seven others were hurt in the incident.

The injured, including three security guards of the institute, were admitted to the hospital’s emergency ward. Till the evening, three had been discharged after treatment while the security guards — Surinder Kumar, Feroz Ansari and Amit — are still recovering.

Eyewitnesses pointed to a beehive near the police post adjoining the Nehru Hospital from where the bees had spread in the area and attacked passersby.

Kumar narrated the incident to Newsline. “We had queued up for the daily attendance in front of the director’s office around 2.30 pm, when a woman came running towards us from the ramp. She was surrounded by bees and struggling to get rid of them. Some of us were stung. Bhandari was coming out of the Nehru Hospital at the same time and he was attacked too. People tried to save him by covering him with blankets but he was severely hurt,” he said.

Bhandari had come to the PGI to visit an ailing acquaintance on the fifth floor of Block A.

Another eyewitness Amit said: “Bhandari had actually left the area but returned, probably because he had forgotten something. It was on the second trip that he was stung by bees.”

According to the doctors, Bhandari suffered anaphylactic shock — a rare allergy affecting one in 10,000 people caused by a stimulus like insect sting.

“We tried to resuscitate him by giving medicines but his blood pressure and pulse kept dropping. Normally in such cases, the patient recovers in 20-30 minutes but we continued the resuscitation for around 45 minutes,” said a doctor at the PGI emergency ward.

All others admitted in the ward are said to be out of danger.

The PGI spokesperson said necessary steps will be taken soon to remove the thriving beehives.

“It was a very tragic incident. We will try to take the necessary steps immediately,” said the spokesperson.

Anger, gloom at home
At the Bhandari residence at Sector 38 West, gloom coupled with anger at the callousness of the authorities engulfed friends and family.
Anu Chatrath, an MC councillor and cousin of the deceased, reacted sharply to the incident. “IIt is shocking that in a place like the PGI, a person died due to bee stings. Why does the administration not remove the beehives there, especially when similar incidents have occurred in the past as well?” she questioned.Bhandari’s wife Sarita is a teacher at a private school. Bhandari had lost his father a few years ago and was staying at his official residence in Sector 26. He had two brothers and a sister.

	Print Story
Engineer dies in bee-attack at PGI Express news service Posted online: Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 0052 hrs IST Chandigarh, February 27 Panic prevailed at the PGI on Wednesday afternoon as bees went into attack mode. Ashok Bhandari (38), a junior engineer with the Public Health wing of the UT administration, died and seven others were hurt in the incident. The injured, including three security guards of the institute, were admitted to the hospital’s emergency ward. Till the evening, three had been discharged after treatment while the security guards — Surinder Kumar, Feroz Ansari and Amit — are still recovering. Eyewitnesses pointed to a beehive near the police post adjoining the Nehru Hospital from where the bees had spread in the area and attacked passersby. Kumar narrated the incident to Newsline. “We had queued up for the daily attendance in front of the director’s office around 2.30 pm, when a woman came running towards us from the ramp. She was surrounded by bees and struggling to get rid of them. Some of us were stung. Bhandari was coming out of the Nehru Hospital at the same time and he was attacked too. People tried to save him by covering him with blankets but he was severely hurt,” he said. Bhandari had come to the PGI to visit an ailing acquaintance on the fifth floor of Block A. Another eyewitness Amit said: “Bhandari had actually left the area but returned, probably because he had forgotten something. It was on the second trip that he was stung by bees.” According to the doctors, Bhandari suffered anaphylactic shock — a rare allergy affecting one in 10,000 people caused by a stimulus like insect sting. “We tried to resuscitate him by giving medicines but his blood pressure and pulse kept dropping. Normally in such cases, the patient recovers in 20-30 minutes but we continued the resuscitation for around 45 minutes,” said a doctor at the PGI emergency ward. All others admitted in the ward are said to be out of danger. The PGI spokesperson said necessary steps will be taken soon to remove the thriving beehives. “It was a very tragic incident. We will try to take the necessary steps immediately,” said the spokesperson. Anger, gloom at home At the Bhandari residence at Sector 38 West, gloom coupled with anger at the callousness of the authorities engulfed friends and family. Anu Chatrath, an MC councillor and cousin of the deceased, reacted sharply to the incident. “IIt is shocking that in a place like the PGI, a person died due to bee stings. Why does the administration not remove the beehives there, especially when similar incidents have occurred in the past as well?” she questioned.Bhandari’s wife Sarita is a teacher at a private school. Bhandari had lost his father a few years ago and was staying at his official residence in Sector 26. He had two brothers and a sister.