Swarm of bees discovered at busy Scott’s Addition intersection: ‘Super weird’

RICHMOND, Va. — An unusual discovery in Scott’s Addition had people buzzing and pedestrians dodging bees on Thursday.

People working near West Moore Street and Mactavish Avenue first noticed a bucket surrounded by honey bees at the busy intersection on Wednesday.

With bees flying and crawling around the area, pedestrians walking through the neighborhood were forced to dodge the swarm.

By Thursday, the bucket had tipped over, and nearby coffee shop owner Alan Smith discovered it was potentially filled with honey.

Smith said he was concerned because the bees were swarming around in the blistering heat.

Smith, who enjoys gardening and knows the importance of bees, moved the bucket into the shade under a nearby tree.

“Oh, they're just in the sun, all dying. All the bees were just crawling around the honey, getting stuck and dying in the heat,” he said.

SCENE VIDEO: Swarm of bees discovered at busy Scott’s Addition intersection

It was unclear why the bucket and the bees ended up at this intersection.

Smith said there was no honeycomb or other structure in the bucket to suggest the bees had built a colony there.

A Richmond Department of Utilities environmental compliance employee also came to the scene because the contents of the bucket was leaking toward a sewer drain.

The employee began working to determine what should be done with the bees and the bucket.

Smith said the bees are worth protecting because of the important role they play as pollinators.

“They're pollinators. They're only here because we imported them to make honey, and they're pollinating all the wildlife and all the flowers and plants and stuff for us. Otherwise, we wouldn't have fruit. We wouldn't have food,” he said.

As for how the bees ended up on a busy Scott’s Addition street remains a mystery.

Smith described the whole situation as “super weird.”

This is a developing story, so check back with WTVR.com for updates. Email the CBS 6 Newsroom if you have info, photos or videos to share.