Slidell officers, K-9 briefly hospitalized after being attacked by hornets during manhunt

NEW ORLEANS – Two Slidell police officers and a K-9 were hospitalized Monday after they were attacked by hornets during a manhunt. 

According to WWL-TV, the Slidell Police Department was called to a report of a vehicle theft out of a gym parking lot. Officers chased the fleeing suspect down I-10 toward New Orleans when the vehicle crashed near an exit and the suspect ran into a nearby marshy area. 

Officers with Slidell and the New Orleans Police Department as well as the FBI were involved in the manhunt. While law enforcement pursued the suspect, two Slidell officers along with K-9 Max were attacked by hundreds of hornets in the woods. 

The manhunt was eventually called off, and the suspect remains at large. 

Max and the officers were briefly hospitalized but released the same day.