On January 28, 1962, Dutchman Johannes Relleke was working at the Kamativi Tin Mine in what was then Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, when he and his dog were suddenly attacked by a huge swarm of bees.

Trying to escape the insects, Relleke and his dog entered the nearby Gwaii River. But the situation became even more terrifying. While Relleke was attempting to keep himself and his dog above the water, a crocodile attacked and killed the dog.

Relleke eventually managed to escape the river and reach safety. When doctors examined him, they discovered that he had suffered an astonishing 2,443 bee stings. The stingers were removed and counted, providing the basis for the Guinness World Records record.

Guinness World Records recognizes Relleke’s case for the most bee stings removed from a person, with the remarkable total of 2,443. Guinness also records that he survived the ordeal and later lived in Australia.

What makes the story particularly extraordinary is that the bee attack was only part of Relleke’s ordeal. He had to survive thousands of venomous stings while simultaneously dealing with a crocodile attack in the river—and ultimately lost the dog he had been trying to protect.

The incident sounds almost unbelievable, but Guinness has preserved it as one of the strangest survival records in its archives.