Pest controllers battled thousands of hornets that stung students and teachers at a university in Thailand.

Emergency crews carried out the operation after the aggressive insects injured staff at the college in Trat province.

The exterminators found dozens of hornet nests on the eaves of the school buildings on May 22. They requested cranes to reach the infested areas safely.

Footage shows the officers suspended on a crane platform as they sprayed insecticide amid heavy rain. They spent hours dismantling the hives, with one animal catcher suffering a painful sting to his torso.

Thani Retsuk, a lecturer, said the college was located next to a forest where the hornets are believed to have migrated.

He said: 'Around three months ago, the hornets started nesting in the accounting department building.

'Staff have previously removed some of the nests, but there were so many it was impossible to eliminate them all.

'Over the past month, several teachers and students have been injured by hornet attacks. We've had to conduct classes with all the doors and windows shut until the college finally called the exterminators.'