Half a Million Bees Killed in Dutch Deliberate Blaze.
A beekeeper from the Netherlands has expressed dismay after his ten colonies were set ablaze in a public garden in the central city of Almere, causing the loss of an estimated half a million bees.
Harold Stringer stated that every colony contained a colony of forty to sixty thousand bees, and the idea that someone could kill them was horrific.
"It is deeply painful that my ten colonies have perished," he informed local broadcaster.
Law enforcement in Almere, which sits to the northeast of Amsterdam, have appealed for observers after the arson attack on Tuesday evening in the city's picturesque Beatrixpark. They posted pictures of the fire on online platforms.
The Netherlands authorities says that over 50% of the country's 360 species of bee are at risk of extinction, as the population of bees decreases globally.
The beekeeper said that authorities had told him an accelerant had been used to burn the colonies, which were placed on wooden platforms in a wooded part of the park.
Barely any of the bees made it through and he noted that he had little faith the arsonist would be caught.
Fellow beekeeper Heleen Nieman stated on national radio that she had three hives and planned to donate a colony.
For the beekeeper, who cared for the colonies for about almost a decade, the fire means building a new colony in the area from scratch.
But he insists he will continue his efforts.
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