"My mother went to get a facecloth from the bathroom for him, but the next thing that happened was he dropped to the ground in the hall and his tongue and throat started to swell, blocking his airway," he added.

"He was frothing at the mouth and mam called an ambulance, and then his heart stopped," Stephen explained.

Because the Kings live iin a relatively remote location it took a while for the ambulance to arrive,.

Stephen and his mother Sylvia rang the emergency services again and asked how to keep Alan alive.

"They explained CPR to us and we got his heart back, but the damage was just too much for him," said Stephen.

allergic

Alan's blood thinned and his brain swelled with the massive allergic reaction, and yesterday evening his life slipped away shortly after 5pm while he was surrounded by his family.

"It is just unbelievable. His whole body just shut down. His wife and son were in the house and the ambulance people were trying to guide them until they arrived," said Alan's brother-in-law Eddie Walsh.

"I mean, you couldn't have knocked Alan down with a JCB, yet a bee killed him," he added.

Alan's family said he was a hard-working man who had just turned 50 in recent months.

He had once been stung by a wasp around 20 years ago and had to rest for 20 minutes after it left him dizzy, but medics have told his family that the massive anaphylactic characteristically only strikes on second exposure to a sting.

"It's like the first sting sets up the system to react if it gets ever stung again," said Stephen.

Paying tribute to his dad, Stephen said Alan was up and out every morning at 5am or 6am and not back until 7pm.

"He didn't have a bad word to say about anyone, and would always help a person if they were in trouble," he said.

"Only a few weeks ago we were slagging him when he came home with a big shiny ring, which wasn't his style. It turns out he met somebody who was in bad need of money so dad gave him €20, and the person then insisted dad take the ring!" said Stephen.

Today the surrounding towlands of picturesque Enniskerry were mourning the loss of their popular neighbour and gathering to support his family in their time of grief.

Alan is survived by his wife Sylvia, and two sons Alan Jnr (25) and Stephen (23).

Deaths from bee or wasp stings are very rare. Experts say that the average person would have a good chance of survival after up to 100 bee stings.

However, one sting can kill a very bee-allergic person. Most stings will normally respond to an antihistamine tablet but for extreme reactions, an adrenaline injection may be required.

Under half a per cent of the population may actually experience a severe allergic reaction to bee stings known as anaphylaxis. Anaphylaxis occurs when the body's immune system takes a harmless substance, such as a bee sting, and attacks it.