Punters scattered as a swarm of angry wasps caused havoc in a city centre, flying down and busy street and invading a beer garden.
Thousands can be seen clustered on a bench in a beer garden, with hundreds more buzzing around the area.
The man filming it was out enjoying the sun today when the swarm descended filling the air around a bar in Edinburgh with an ominous whirr, EdinburghLive reports.
He said: “This is happening right now outside the Merlin in Morningside, Edinburgh.
"They have been swarming up and down the road causing havoc.”
The scene would not look out of place in a Stephen King novel with the buzz of the stinging insects reverberating across the city.
In 2018 groundskeeper Marc Gabriel escaped death after running over a wasps nest with a lawn mower in a cemetery.
The father-of-four was repeatedly stung but fled the scene on his ride on mower before collapsing on a stranger's doorstep.
By complete chance the person who found him had an oxygen cylinder and was able to treat him as paramedics raced to the scene.
Speaking to the BBC in the same year, Natalie Bungay, technical officer at the British Pest Control Association (BPCA), said that they usually only sting when they feel threatened.
She said: “The problem is a wasp in distress emits a pheromone that sends nearby colony members into a defensive, stinging frenzy.
"That's right - scare a wasp and it might call for backup."
Ms Bungay added that unlike bees, wasps do not die after one sting. They can, and will, sting you quite a few times.
She continued: "While being stung by one wasp isn't normally dangerous, 30 or 40 stings could kill you."
But it is estimated less than 10 people die as a result of bee and wasp stings in the UK every year.
Estimates on how dangerous stings are vary, with the average person able to withstand far more than 30 or 40 and probably more like 1,000.
Only two people out of every 1,000 stung suffer any kind of allergic reaction.
A Rentokil blog post gave some sage advice for those trying to survive a wasp swarm.
It said: “Wasps’ behaviour changes in late summer as their preferred food shifts from sugars to proteins.
"Because of this, you will more likely encounter them wherever food is consumed outdoors and around rubbish collection areas.
“If you notice large numbers of wasps in your home or garden, there is likely to be a wasp nest nearby.
"It may be in your house, in your garden or very close by. A mature nest in summer/autumn can contain thousands of wasps.
"When they do attack, most wasps, yellow jackets and hornets are aggressive and will sting repeatedly.”
The do’s if a wasp attacks you are:
Always remain still if a wasp approaches you.
If you have to run away, do so in a straight line, without flailing your arms.
Protect your head and face, as these areas are mostly likely to be targeted by the wasps.
The don'ts if a wasp attacks you are:
If you swat at the wasp or swing your arms, you’ll only make it more aggressive and more likely to sting you.
Do not try to fool wasps by “playing dead”. They will simply continue stinging you.
Do not seek shelter in a body of water, as the wasps will simply wait for you to re-emerge.
