Worker dies after bee attack at California construction site

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Tuesday, August 4, 2015
honey bees
Honeybees work in a hive located in an apple grove at Hartland Orchard, a family farm near the the Blue Ridge Mountains in Markham, Va., Sunday, Sept. 14, 2014. (AP)
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RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- A fire chief says a worker has died after being stung by bees that swarmed a Southern California construction site.

Riverside Battalion Chief Tony Perna says three construction workers were stung Monday morning when a contractor was grading a parking lot. Perna says the grader struck an underground sprinkler control vault that housed a bee hive.

Workers say the bees began swarming and the crew panicked and started to run. Two men covered their faces with their hands and rolled on the ground and a third swatted at bees with a vest.

One of the men had an allergic reaction and died after being transported to a hospital in critical condition.

The deceased worker was not immediately identified.