"The hornets of your nightmares: Swarms of massive insects kill 4 and injure 26"

"The hornets of your nightmares: Swarms of massive insects kill 4 and injure 26"

Posted: Aug 19, 2017 By Jill Reilly, Miami Herald

Swarms of deadly hornets have killed 4 people and injured at least 26 in the Ravenswood Estates neighborhood of Fort Lauderdale. At least 17 patients are in a critical or serious condition in hospitals.

Many Victims of the attack have been left with deep, dark craters in their skin the size of bullet wounds. Firefighters destroyed several nests they believed belonged to the aggressive Asian Hornet. The Chinese term for these hornets is 'hu feng'.

The species is predatory and very aggressive, growing four times the size of British honeybees. News outlets in China stat the insects were responsible for more than 1,600 people in northern China being hospitalized over the last decade.

The insects' highly toxic stings can lead to anaphylactic shock and renal failure. Some victims described being chased about 200 metres (656 feet) by a swarm. One victim told local media that 'the more you run, the more they want to chase you' The hornet sting can be extremely painful to humans and has been compared to a hot nail being hammered into the body. The head of the hornet is orange and quite wide in comparison to other hornet species.

Authorities have mobilized a special medic team and trained more medical personnel to treat victims of the foreign species, believed to have been imported illegally. Specialists have warned that the dry and warm weather this year has contributed to the ferocity of attacks. Attacks are difficult to prevent because hornet nests are usually in hidden sites.

One of the victims has been forced to begin undergoing dialysis treatments due to Renal failure. She has 200 stitches, but still can not move her legs.

'They hit right at my head and covered my legs. All of a sudden I was stung and I couldn't move.