Pune: At least 16 tourists, including five children, were injured in a honeybee attack near the Shivai Devi temple at Shivneri Fort on Sunday morning at around 9:30 AM. The victims, hailing from Jalna, Pune, and Shrivardhan, were stung by a swarm of bees, marking the fourth such incident at the fort in just two months.
Forest officials explained that the rising temperatures have driven honeybees towards water sources, where the attack occurred. It is believed that the use of perfumes by some visitors from Mumbai may have triggered the swarm’s aggressive response.
Panic spread quickly among the tourists, but the situation was swiftly managed by staff from the Archaeological Department, who assisted people in escaping the base of the fort. A rescue team from Junnar, led by Rajkumar Chavan, Atik Sayyed, and Mahendra Navale, arrived on-site with an ambulance to provide immediate medical support.
Gokul Dabhade, an official from the Archaeological Department, helped evacuate a woman and two children who had been stung. All the injured were taken to Chhatrapati Shivaji Government Hospital in Junnar for treatment.
