When Nolanville firefighters arrived at the property in the 15000 block of FM 439 just after 4:30 p.m., the man was pinned to his tractor by a large branch that had fallen on him when his tractor hit the tree. A swarm of bees then attacked the man.
It was unclear late Friday whether the tree branch or the bees led to the man’s death.
“This was a very large branch, I don’t really know the diameter of it which fell on him and pinned him against his tractor on his back,” Nolanville Volunteer Fire Department Assistant Fire Chief Michael Mayfield said. “During that time the bees were stinging him. He had numerous bee stings on his upper body and face. We had to use a chainsaw to cut the branch up and move it off of him.”
It was also not known how long the man had been trapped before family members returned home. When they got there the man was conscious and talking but not really alert, Mayfield said.
“He may have been there for two or three hours,” he said. “His family had been out for a while and found him when they returned.”
The department’s engine crew used a chainsaw to cut the tree away from him so they could get him off the tractor and onto the stretcher.
“Then they could get him on a board ready for transport by helicopter,” Mayfield said.
He said there were hundreds of bees on the man but firefighters went in with only their protective gear and helmets.
Bell County Sheriff’s Office is investigating.
Scott & White Stat Air took the unidentified man to the hospital.
Justice of the Peace G.W. Ivey pronounced the man dead at 6:10 p.m.
