A Family's Unbelievable Discovery: 70,000 Bees Hidden in Their Home
In September 2023, Ashley Massis Class and her family in North Carolina began experiencing unsettling nights. Her three-year-old daughter, Saylor, started having trouble sleeping, complaining of monsters in her closet and hearing a persistent hum in the wall. Initially, the parents dismissed it as imagination, linking it to Saylor's love for the movie Monsters, Inc, which features creatures visiting children's bedrooms. They attempted to soothe her with a bottle of water dubbed "monster spray," but the fear persisted.
The Search for Answers
By February, Saylor's anxiety escalated, forcing her back into her parents' room. Later that month, Ashley, pregnant with her third child and exhausted, spotted a large cluster of bees buzzing near the attic laundry vent outside their house. Doubting her own senses, she called beekeepers for help. The first two inspections yielded no results, with professionals assuring the family everything was fine. It wasn't until a third beekeeper, with over 30 years of experience, investigated further that the truth emerged.
This expert noticed bees flying into the attic floorboards and inquired about the room below—Saylor's bedroom. Using a thermal camera, he scanned the attic floor but found nothing. In a rare move, he then directed the camera to Saylor's bedroom wall. The screen illuminated with a shape over six feet tall, resembling a man in a top hat, leaving Ashley stunned. The bees had entered through a tiny window hole, crawled into the attic, slipped through floorboards, and constructed a massive hive in the wall cavity.
The Chaotic Extraction Process
The beekeeper proposed opening the wall with a hammer. While Ashley stayed downstairs with Saylor and her brother due to a bee allergy, her husband assisted. Suddenly, chaos erupted as bees poured out in a scene described as "like a horror movie." The beekeeper used a vacuum attachment to gently extract the insects, removing 40,000 bees and over 100 pounds of honeycomb in a single day—a sight he had never encountered before.
The captured bees buzzed loudly, and when shown to Saylor, she confirmed it was the noise she had been hearing, vindicating her earlier claims. The family learned that bees are most active between midnight and 4 a.m., explaining why Saylor's bedtime at 7 p.m. coincided with the humming. Despite the beekeeper's bee suit, Saylor excitedly called him a "monster hunter," eagerly asking about each visit.
Aftermath and Financial Strain
The infestation left Saylor's room coated in honey, affecting books, blankets, and toys. The beekeeper sealed a hole in the wall but warned of returning bees, including robber bees that consume leftover honey. Over subsequent weeks, he extracted an additional 30,000 bees. By July, the hole was fully sealed, but the family faced a $20,000 repair bill, as their insurance deemed the damage preventable despite the beekeeper calling it a "once-in-a-lifetime" event. They had to take out a loan to cover costs.
Now, the room has been converted into a nursery for Ashley's son, but lingering fears remain. Ashley occasionally checks the walls for any signs of return, while Saylor appears indifferent to bees. The beekeeper relocated the bees to his apiary, contributing to conservation efforts for this endangered species. Reflecting on the ordeal, Ashley humorously notes they've certainly done their part for bee populations.
