Bees create a buzz by invading family home

Mum-of-four Michelle Flack explained how she noticed the bees coming down her chimney and into the living room of her Mount Street home last Tuesday afternoon.

“The same thing happened three years ago. I couldn’t believe it when I saw they were back; I nearly died,” she said.

“There were probably 20 or 30 bees in the living room at one stage, but outside was absolutely swarming, there must have been thousands of them. It was really warm, but we couldn’t even open a window. They were all over the outside of the house, coming down the chimney and even in through the holes where the TV cables come into the house.”

Fearing that her children, aged 10, four, three and one, could get stung, she quickly contacted local Councillor Paul Rankin, who’d helped the family resolve their bee problem three years ago.

The DUP man got in touch with the Housing Executive’s Neil Curran, who organised a cherry picker so that an experienced beekeeper could get access to the roof of the property the following day.

On Wednesday Mount Street was a hive of activity as the beekeeper got onto the roof, accessed the chimney and removed the queen bee, ensuring the rest of the swarm took flight.

Michelle is hoping the Housing Executive will now carry out work to fit a mesh cover over the chimney to ensure the bees can’t make another unwelcome return.

“Apparently they can leave a scent so that’s probably why they came back to the same place, even after three years,” she added. “But hopefully this time they won’t be back.”