CLAYCOMO, Mo. -- Crews said about 25 million honeybees were inadvertently released after a tractor-trailer wrecked on an area highway over the weekend. Monday evening, about 12 million bees remained on the loose, KMBC's Bev Chapman reported.

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The accident happened Sunday at Interstate 435 and Interstate 35 north when a tractor-trailer carrying more than 500 beehives, which carry thousands of bees each, flipped on its side. The cargo spilled all over the highway, forcing crews to shut down an off ramp for a time.

Bee handlers suited up to wrangle the honeybees back into hives. Workers said they would be able to capture most of the bees, but some would have to be destroyed.

"We're going to have 80-to-90 percent of them. Some of them are just going to have to be sprayed and killed in the long run," said Rheuben Johnson, a bee specialist working at the crash scene.

Paramedics in the area kept injections on hand in case anyone suffered an allergic reaction from a bee sting. As of Monday evening, no one had to be treated for stings.

Residents who live in the area said that they will be glad when the bees are gone.

"It just makes you nervous seeing that many bees in one area. I have two little ones and they are in the house right now and not allowed to come out," a woman told KMBC.

The driver of the tractor-trailer was not hurt. He was cited for careless and imprudent driving, Chapman reported.

An Iowa farmer owns the bees, which were being taken to Wisconsin to help pollinate cranberry bogs.