EMBU, Kenya – Four preschool children and their teacher are recovering at Granton and Polly Private Hospital in Kathangariri, Embu North Sub-county, after sustaining injuries in a bee attack at their daycare. Five other children were treated and discharged.
The children, aged between one and a half and three years, had just begun their morning play session under the care of their nanny, Grace Karimi, when a swarm of bees descended.
“At around 10 a.m., the children were engaged in singing games when the bees attacked. I tried to protect them, but in the process I suffered more stings,” Karimi recounted. The daycare has an enrolment of 20 children.
Children Stabilised in Hospital
According to clinician Dickson Murithi of Granton and Polly Hospital, eight children and the nanny were rushed to the facility, with several suffering anaphylactic reactions.
“Three children were treated and discharged immediately, while four others and their nanny were admitted for further observation. They have since been stabilised,” Murithi said.
Parents Raise Concern Over Safety
Parents expressed alarm at what they described as recurring bee invasions at the daycare.
“We dropped our children as usual in the morning, only to receive news of the bee attack. This is the second time bees have invaded ACK Kathangariri Daycare,” said Aphuid Kimanthi, whose one-and-a-half-year-old daughter was among those injured.
Local authorities have yet to issue a statement on the incident or outline measures to prevent future attacks.
