A 55-year-old Massachusetts woman is facing several assault and battery charges for allegedly releasing a swarm of bees on a group of sheriff’s deputies as they tried to serve an eviction notice.

Rorie Woods, who lives in Hadley, is accused of carrying out the attack while officers from Hampden County Sheriff’s Department were dealing with an eviction notice at a home in Longmeadow.

She arrived in an SUV towing a number of beehives and started “shaking” them, breaking the cover off one and causing hundreds of bees to swarm out and initially sting one deputy, in an effort to stop the eviction.

Woods put on a beekeeper’s suit to protect herself and was eventually arrested, but not before several more staff were stung, including three who are allergic to bees, an official department report said.

When Woods was told this, she replied “Oh, you’re allergic? Good,” according to the report.

Hampden County Sheriff Nick Cocchi said: “We had one staff member go to hospital, and, luckily, he was all right.”

He said Woods could have faced more serious charges if anything worse had happened to those stung.

Father and son found clinging to cool box as video shows dramatic rescue from sinking boat near Boston Harbor

‘Lucky’ escape as humpback whale jumps from sea near Boston and lands on fishing boat

Massachusetts: Divers rescue diamond ring after woman dropped it from yacht into Charles River

She pleaded not guilty to the charges relating to the 12 October incident at Springfield District Court and was released without bail.

It is not known what connection Woods has to the property where the eviction notice was being served.

Related posts:

Notre-Dame’s spire to be rebuilt with 200-year-old oaks from royal forest Eighth night of violence between Israel and Gaza as Biden makes fresh call for ceasefire Greek travel boss expects islands to be added to green list next month Asian countries tighten COVID restrictions as cases rise and vaccine rollouts struggle 11 children ‘receiving care for trauma’ among youngsters killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza Lionel Messi agrees to join Paris Saint-Germain on two-year contract after leaving Barcelona Body of missing British hiker Esther Dingley and her equipment found together in Pyrenees Russia completes controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline ‘Wasteful and counter-productive’: China’s Zhejiang greenlights new £800m coal-fired power plant Surge in Hong Kong coronavirus cases pushes neighbouring Chinese city into lockdown Has Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dented the friendship that knows ‘no limits’? Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard wins his first Tour de France as British racer Geraint Thomas finishes third