COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho (AP) — Authorities say nearly all of the estimated 4 million bees released along the Washington-Idaho border in a tipped tractor will die after being separated from their hives.

The Coeur d'Alene Press reports that emergency crews used foam to subdue the buzzing insects on Sunday. Loaders were then used to scoop up the limp bees and put them in dump trucks. Local beekeeper Scott Weston says bees tend to die immediately once torn apart from their queen bee. Idaho State Police officials are still investigating the cause of the crash.

A similar wreck occurred last week where more than 20 million bees spilled on State Highway 33 in eastern Idaho. Those bees were being shipped to North Dakota to pollinate crops and make honey.

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