The last hives are being removed, but now, Mr. Johnson has another problem to deal with.
GALVESTON COUNTY, Texas — A Galveston County man’s decade-long bee problem has been solved after his friends reached out to KHOU 11.
The nonprofit The Bee and Me spent the last few days removing three bee colonies from Jimmy Johnson’s home.
Relief from the bees is near, but he’s now facing another dilemma.
Johnson said home construction and repair efforts have fallen by the wayside because he couldn’t do much work with bees swarming. The bees are being removed, but the damage they’ve done to the siding of his home is permanent.
It’s been a buzzing problem inside Johnson’s home for more than 30 years, so the relief he’s feeling is massive.
“There’s people … they got a heart, a good heart, and care about others … that’s beautiful,” he said.
For nearly two weeks, KHOU 11 has shown the work it has taken to get Johnson the help he needed. Almost immediately after our first story aired, Carlos Hernandez stepped up.
He worked on his off time to clear out the colonies and ultimately relocate the bees where they should be — outside of the wall of Johnson’s home.
Hernandez said the home is aging, so there’s unavoidable deterioration. But unlike water, when honey seeps into the wood, it can’t evaporate — it stays there.
Unfortunately, the bees aren’t the end of Johnson’s worries.
“I appreciate what you all are doing for me, and the bee people are doing for me, but I need more help,” Johnson said.
The bee problem has lasted so long, Johnson has pushed off home improvements. Contractors are often fearful that the work would stir up the bees.
Johnson’s porch is caving and damage from a storm was never fixed.
“But now maybe I can try to patch a board here. Patch a board there until I make some progress,” he said.
Hernandez said he’s coming back to remove a small portion of honeycomb, and he left a few more bees to clear up leftover honey in the wall, to try to avoid removing more siding.
“Once I’ve got them all out of here, he shouldn’t have a problem,” Hernandez said.
However, Hernandez said homes have so many cracks and crevices that it’s virtually impossible to guarantee they won’t come back. But the work he’s done now provides some long-awaited peace.
“Now, I’ll be able to come out and sit down in the yard like a person should be able to do — without the bees,” Johnson said.
The Bee and Me stepped up to help remove the bees for free. So now, Johnson is hoping someone else can step up to help bring his home some new life.
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