SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Fans and players on Petco Park's field fled as hundreds of bees swarmed near the Padres' dugout Sunday afternoon.
At about 4:06 p.m., in the bottom of the 3rd inning, Fox Sports reported a queen bee landed on their microphone and hundreds of bees followed suit.
"It made my skin crawl," Padres Fan Kel Loftis said.
"Out of the blue all of the sudden you saw everybody running off the field," Padres Fan Bob Pollack said.
As fans saw the area clear out, some were concerned for their family's safety, "it was kinda crazy like what's going on?" Loftis said. As a military man, he was concerned something more serious was happening.
Then everyone in the stadium saw the television screens with a close up on the swarm. "Between [Austin] Hedges, [Josh] Naylor and [Glenn] Hoffman, you know the third base coach, I was wondering who was more panicked," Loftis said chuckling.
Padres Catcher Austin Hedges was seen wearing a Deadpool mask, sweatshirt and holding two bats, seemingly ready to battle the bees.
A man from Cartwright Pest Control came out to save the day. Fans dubbed him "Bee Man." The delay in total was less than 30 minutes.
The Padres confirmed the company is out at the park for every game in case of an event like this.
A group of Girl Scouts in the crowd were concerned about the safety of the bees.
This isn't the first time Petco's had bees, a swarm showed up in July of 2009 and delayed the game by almost an hour.
While fans thought the bee delay Sunday was strange, they took it in stride.
Some parents used it as a teachable moment. "Well she had a lot of questions so the first thing she said was why are the bees out there?" Loftis said.
The Padres confirmed they are equipped with EpiPens, as well as Benadryl in the event of an allergic reaction. There were no reports of anyone being stung.
