Driver oblivious to hidden danger on backseat after grocery shop

A man has returned to his car after grocery shopping oblivious to the fact a swarm of bees had taken over his parked vehicle.

Las Cruces firefighters were called out to the unusual report at Albertson’s grocery store the US state of New Mexico last Saturday afternoon (local time).

It took an off-duty firefighter, who happened to be a hobby beekeeper, nearly two hours to safely relocate the swarm of the estimated 15,000 bees.

According to firefighters who attended the scene, the driver had left his back window open while shopping and didn’t realise the huge swarm had made his car their temporary home until after he had loaded his groceries in the backseat and began to drive off.

"He turned back and looked and was like ‘holy cow'," responding firefighter and beekeeper Jesse Johnson told The New York Times.

Photos posted to Facebook by the Las Cruces firefighters show Mr Johnson using a hive kit, lemongrass oil, gloves and protective clothing to rehome the bees.

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“Luckily, when bees are swarming, they’re pretty docile,” he told the Times.

“They don’t have a home to protect for a moment. It’s much more intimidating than it is dangerous.”

Firefighters blocked off the immediate area while the relocation took place, however one unlucky security guard was stung.

"It is possible a few patrons may have had close encounters, but no major injuries were reported," the Las Cruces Fire Department's Facebook post read.

The fire department confirmed that while they don't usually respond to bee swarms, they jumped into action as the incident happened in a relatively high-traffic area during a busy part of the day.

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