Incident Context & Threat Assessment
Hurricanes Irma and Maria demonstrated that tropical cyclones devastate apiaries through two distinct phases:
- Immediate Kinetic Damage (Day 0): High winds, flying debris, and torrential rainfall topple unanchored hives, drenching the brood nest.
- Extended Ecological Starvation (Days 3–90): Total defoliation of flowering trees (Guaba, Yagrumo, Moca, and wild coffee) causes complete nectar cessation. Without human intervention, 80%+ of surviving colonies perish from starvation within 60 days.
This runbook dictates the chronological protocol executed by BuenoBee operational personnel before, during, and after major cyclonic events.
1. Pre-Storm Hardening Phase (T-72 to T-12 Hours)
BASH
# Pre-storm inventory and telemetry checkpoint
$ buenobee-cli telemetry --check-battery-soc --all-nodes
$ buenobee-cli apiary-lockdown --site=mayaguez-sanctuary --strap-verify=true- Ratcheting Strap Lockdown: Wrap heavy-duty 2-inch polyester ratcheting straps (1,500 lb working load limit) around bottom board, brood boxes, and outer telescoping lid, anchoring to concrete ground deadmen.
- Entrance Reducer Insertion: Install notched wooden entrance reducers on the narrowest aperture (20 mm) facing away from prevailing easterly hurricane winds.
- Screened Bottom Board Shuttering: Slide solid galvanized inspection boards into bottom screens to prevent updraft water injection.
- PV Array Stow Mode: Mechanically lock bifacial solar panel racking to horizontal stow profile (0° tilt) to minimize aerodynamic lift.
2. Post-Landfall Triage Flowchart (Hours 0–48)
Execute site inspection as soon as civil defense authorities clear road transit:
MERMAID
flowchart TD
A[Inspect Hive Integrity] --> B{Is Hive Toppled?}
B -- Yes --> C[Right Box Carefully & Check for Queen]
B -- No --> D{Water Intruded?}
C --> E[Replace Drenched Frames with Dry Honeycomb]
D -- Yes --> E
D -- No --> F[Assess Internal Honey Reserves]
E --> F
F --> G{Reserve < 5 lbs?}
G -- Yes --> H[Install Rapid Feeder: Emergency 1:1 Formulation]
G -- No --> I[Monitor Hive Weight Telemetry Weekly]
H --> J[Apply SHB Oil Traps & Robbing Screens]3. Emergency Post-Canopy Nutritional Formulation
When the island canopy is 100% stripped of foliage, provide emergency maintenance rations within 96 hours post-storm:
| Component | Proportion (per 50L batch) | Role in Colony Survival |
|---|---|---|
| Filtered Well Water | 25 Liters (boiled & cooled) | Hydration and syrup solvent |
| Organic Cane Sugar | 25 Kilograms (1:1 ratio) | Readily metabolizable carbohydrate fuel |
| Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) | 50 Grams | Powerful antioxidant reducing thermal stress |
| Natural Sea Salt | 15 Grams | Replaces trace electrolytes stripped by floods |
| Spirulina / Yeast Patty | 200g cake per colony | Essential amino acids to maintain queen ovulation |
Warning
Never feed commercial foreign pollen supplements that lack irradiation certification. They risk introducing Chalkbrood (Ascosphaera apis) or European Foulbrood to stressed colonies.
4. Weekly Recovery Milestones
- Week 1: Right all equipment, stabilize internal hydration, clean debris within a 15-meter perimeter.
- Week 2: Full frame audit; combine queenless colonies with strong queenright hives using the newspaper method.
- Week 4: Check pioneer vegetation emergence (Mimosa pudica, tropical weeds) for initial natural pollen influx.
- Week 8: Taper supplemental feeding as secondary canopy trees (Cordia alliodora, citrus) resume vegetative flowering.