A Japanese yellow hornet nest is seen in this unrelated file photo. (Mainichi)

       KITAKYUSHU, Fukuoka -- Some 20 people were apparently stung by hornets in this southwest Japan city on Aug. 15, resulting in 12 being taken to the hospital for treatment.

       The Kitakyushu City Fire Department received an emergency call at around 2 p.m. on Aug. 15, saying that multiple people had been stung on a cycling road near Hibikinada Green Park in the city's Wakamatsu Ward. A total of 12 men and women aged between 8 and 63 were transported to the hospital, but all of them were conscious and their injuries minor.

       According to the fire department, the 12 people taken to hospital were cycling or walking with their families. They included seven children aged between 8 and 12. As some other people were stung but directly went home, the Kitakyushu Municipal Government estimated a total of about 20 people were stung. In the city, rain that had been falling since Aug. 12 had stopped on Aug. 15.

       When Hibikinada Green Park employees searched around the site, they found a nest of what appeared to be Japanese yellow hornets, which are said to be very aggressive, and exterminated them. The park suspended its bicycle rental service on Aug. 16, and entities including the municipal government intend to search for other nests and alert people walking around the area.

       (Japanese original by Akiho Narimatsu, Kyushu News Department)

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