Masked heroes came to the rescue of frightened residents in Wycombe at the weekend as a swarm of bees settled in the town.

On a sunny Saturday afternoon, a dark cloud began to hover over parts of the town, with the High Wycombe Bee Keepers Association coming to the rescue after a series of panicked telephone calls.

Numerous sightings led to some confusion, but it was later discovered that the flying menace was in fact a large swarm of “friendly” bees which eventually settled on a building owned by the Wycombe Islamic Society (WISE).

Tanveer Hussain, the new Centre Manager at WISE, said: “Within an hour, Brian and Jackie had calmly moved the bee hive from the front of the premises into a box.

“Once the queen was in the box, the other bees started leaving the building and followed the queen into the box. It was amazing to watch and learn from the bee keepers.”

WISE now plan to arrange a visit to the Wycombe apiary so that the Sunday Islamic school students can see the work of the beekeepers association.