Millions of honeybees abuzz after truck overturns in Washington state

BELLINGHAM, Wash. — There was a buzz in the air Friday in northwestern Washington state as about 250 million honeybees escaped a commercial truck that overturned.
The truck hauling an estimated 70,000 pounds (31,751 kilograms) of honeybee hives rolled over around 4 a.m. close to the Canadian border near Lynden, the Whatcom County Sheriff's Office said in social media posts.
Deputies, county public works employees and several bee experts responded to the scene. The box hives later came off the truck, and local beekeepers swarmed to help recover, restore and reset the hives, according to the sheriff's office.
The plan is to allow the bees to return to their hives and find their queen bee in the next day or two, according to the sheriff's office. The goal is to save as many of the bees as possible.
'Thank you to the wonderful community of beekeepers: over two dozen showed up to help ensure the rescue of millions of pollinating honey bees would be as successful as possible,' the sheriff's office post said.
The public was advised to avoid the area on Friday, and sheriff's deputies dove into in their squad cars at times to avoid being stung.
Officials didn't say whether the truck driver was hurt or why the truck rolled.
Honeybees are crucial to the food supply, pollinating over 100 crops including nuts, vegetables, berries, citrus and melons. Bees and other pollinators have been declining for years , and experts blame insecticides, parasites, disease, climate change and lack of a diverse food supply.
In 2018, the U.N. General Assembly sponsored the first 'World Bee Day' on May 20 to bring attention to the bees' plight .
Beekeepers often transport millions of bees from one location to another because leaving them in one location for too long can deplete resources for other pollinators, The Seattle Times reported .
Alan Woods, president of the Washington State Beekeepers Association, told the newspaper the state should have a standardized 'emergency bee response' for bee vehicle crashes. In 2015, 14 million bees escaped a truck north of Seattle on Interstate 5 and started stinging people, the newspaper reported at the time.

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South Korea's new President Lee vows to pursue talks with North and bolster ties with US and Japan

Chicago Tribune

2 hours ago

Chicago Tribune

South Korea's new President Lee vows to pursue talks with North and bolster ties with US and Japan

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea's new President Lee Jae-myung vowed Wednesday to restart dormant talks with North Korea and bolster a trilateral partnership with the U.S. and Japan, as he laid out key policy goals for his single, five-year term. Lee, who rose from childhood poverty to become South Korea's leading liberal politician vowing to fight inequality and corruption, began his term earlier Wednesday, hours after winning a snap election that was triggered in April by the removal of then-President Yoon Suk Yeol over his ill-fated imposition of martial law late last year. In his inaugural address at the National Assembly, Lee said that his government will deal with North Korean nuclear threats and its potential military aggressions with 'strong deterrence' based on the South Korea-U.S. military alliance. But he said he would 'open a communication channel with North Korea and establish peace on the Korean Peninsula through talks and cooperation.' He said he'll pursue pragmatic diplomacy with neighboring countries and boost trilateral Seoul-Washington-Tokyo cooperation. 'Through pragmatic diplomacy based on national interests, we will turn the crisis posed by the major shift in global economic and security landscapes into an opportunity to maximize our national interests,' Lee said. It was unclear whether Lee's election would cause any major, immediate shift in South Korea's foreign policy. Lee, previously accused by critics of tilting toward China and North Korea and away from the U.S. and Japan, has recently repeatedly stressed South Korea's alliance with the U.S. as the foundation of its foreign policy and avoided any contentious remarks that would raise questions on his views on the U.S. and Japan. 'We'll have to now see if the pressures of office will cause Lee Jae-myung to govern from the center — at least when it comes to matters of national security and the alliance with the United States,' said Ankit Panda, an expert with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. 'It's hard to predict with absolute certainty how he will deal with the U.S., North Korea, Japan and China because he's changed his position so much,' said Duyeon Kim, a senior analyst at the Washington-based Center for a New American Security. 'We can expect tensions if his government doesn't align with Washington's approach to China and Japan.' The toughest external challenges awaiting Lee are U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policy and North Korea's expanding military partnerships with Russia. But experts earlier said whoever becomes president can't do much to secure major progress in South Korea's favor on those issues. The U.S. and Japan said they congratulated Lee's election and expressed their commitments to developing three-way cooperation. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he wants to hold summit talks with Lee 'as early as possible,' saying he hopes to further promote bilateral ties, both public and commercial. The U.S. State Department said that Seoul and Washington share 'an ironclad commitment' to the alliance. Chinese President Xi Jinping also sent a congratulatory message to Lee, saying that Beijing is willing to work with Seoul to advance their cooperative partnership for the benefit of the countries' peoples, according to state broadcaster CCTV. It's unclear how North Korea would react to Lee's speech, as it has shunned any talks with South Korea and the U.S. since 2019. North Korea in recent years has supplied weapons and troops to support Russia's war against Ukraine, and South Korea, the U.S. and their partners suspect Russia might in return transfer high-tech technologies to North Korea to help it perfect its nuclear weapons program. Russia's Tass news agency said Wednesday that top Russian security official Sergei Shoigu has arrived in Pyongyang for a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, in the latest sign of the countries' booming exchanges. Lee has said he would support Trump's moves to restart nuclear diplomacy with Kim Jong Un as part of efforts to engage with North Korea. North Korea hasn't publicly responded to Trump's outreach. 'Lee and Trump would personally want to resume dialogue with Kim Jong Un. But North Korea has no incentive to talk to Washington or Seoul,' said Duyeon Kim, the analyst. 'Pyongyang has Beijing and Moscow's support both politically and economically, and can buy a lot of time to further perfect its nuclear weapons.' Later Wednesday, Lee nominated former Unification Minister Lee Jong-seok, a dove who favors greater rapprochement with North Korea, as his spy chief. The nomination is likely related to Lee Jae-myung's hopes to reopen talks, as the National Intelligence Service previously played a behind-the-scene role to promote ties with North Korea, observers say. Lee Jae-myung also nominated his key political ally and veteran lawmaker Kim Min-seok as prime minister, the government's No. 2 job. Lee is expected to nominate other top Cabinet members in coming days. Lee called for unity to address the country's stark political divide deepened after Yoon's martial law debacle, saying that he will 'answer the people's solemn call to let hope bloom over deep and painful wounds.' Lee still promised a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Yoon's martial law imposition, describing it as a 'rebellion that seized people's sovereignty with arms.' Lee said revitalizing a slowing domestic economy would be his top priority and that his government would immediately launch an emergency task force to wage a 'head-on battle' against the threats of recession. He also promised more aggressive government spending to help spur economic activity. South Korea's central bank last week cut its key interest rate and sharply lowered its growth outlook for 2025 to 0.8%, as it moved to counter Trump's tariff hikes and weak domestic demand worsened by recent political turmoil. Lee also reiterated his campaign vows to reduce inequality, saying that 'the polarization fueled by inequality is now hindering further growth.' Lee's term began immediately without the usual two-month transition period after the National Election Commission formally confirmed his election victory. Before his inauguration, Lee visited the national cemetery in Seoul to pay his respects to late Korean leaders, patriots and war dead who are buried there, and he had a telephone call with Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Kim Myung-soo to call for military readiness against possible North Korean aggression.

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News24

3 hours ago

News24

Two young sisters in therapy after alleged sexual assault by motorsport executive

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