Half a Million Bees Killed in Dutch Deliberate Blaze.
A beekeeper from the Netherlands has voiced shock after his ten colonies were burned down in a park in the central city of Almere, resulting in the loss of an approximated 500,000 bees.
The beekeeper stated that each hive contained a colony of forty to sixty thousand bees, and the idea that someone could kill them was devastating.
"It is deeply painful that my ten colonies have perished," he told regional media.
Law enforcement in Almere, located to the east of Amsterdam, have appealed for witnesses after the deliberate fire on Tuesday night in the city's scenic Beatrixpark. They posted pictures of the blaze on social media.
The Dutch government reports that over 50% of the country's 360 species of bee are at risk of dying out, as the number of bees decreases around the world.
Mr Stringer said that police had told him an accelerant had been employed to ignite the hives, which were sitting on pallets in a forested area of the garden.
Almost none of the bees survived and he said that he had little faith the arsonist would be apprehended.
Another apiarist a local beekeeper told Dutch radio that she had three bee colonies and wanted to donate a colony.
For Mr Stringer, who looked after the bees for about nine years, the fire means starting a new colony in the area from scratch.
But he affirms he will not give up.
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