500,000 Bees Killed in Dutch Fire Incident.
A Dutch beekeeper has voiced dismay after his ten colonies were burned down in a park in the city of Almere, causing the loss of an estimated half a million bees.
The beekeeper mentioned that every colony housed a colony of forty to sixty thousand bees, and the thought that anyone could destroy them was devastating.
"It is deeply painful that my ten colonies have died," he told local broadcaster.
Law enforcement in Almere, which sits to the northeast of Amsterdam, have appealed for observers after the arson attack on Tuesday night in the city's picturesque Beatrixpark. They posted images of the fire on online platforms.
The Netherlands authorities says that more than half of the country's 360 species of bee are at risk of dying out, as the population of bees declines around the world.
Mr Stringer explained that authorities had told him an flammable substance had been employed to burn the hives, which were placed on wooden platforms in a forested area of the park.
Almost none of the bees made it through and he said that he had little faith the perpetrator would be apprehended.
Fellow beekeeper Heleen Nieman stated on national radio that she had three hives and wanted to give him a colony.
For Mr Stringer, who looked after the bees for about nine years, the incident means building a new colony in the park from the beginning.
But he affirms he will not give up.
Related Incidents
- A Million Bees Lost in Deliberate Hive Fire.
