500,000 Bees Killed in Dutch Fire Incident.
A Dutch beekeeper has expressed shock after his ten colonies were set ablaze in a public garden in the central city of Almere, resulting in the loss of an estimated half a million bees.
The beekeeper mentioned that each hive housed a population of forty to sixty thousand bees, and the thought that anyone could kill them was devastating.
"It is deeply painful that my ten colonies have perished," he informed local broadcaster.
Police in Almere, which sits to the east of Amsterdam, have requested observers after the arson attack on Tuesday night in the city's picturesque Beatrixpark. They shared pictures of the blaze on social media.
The Dutch government reports that more than half of the country's 360 types of bee are at risk of dying out, as the population of bees declines around the world.
Mr Stringer explained that police had told him an flammable substance had been employed to burn the colonies, which were sitting on wooden platforms in a forested area of the garden.
Almost none of the bees survived and he noted 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 give him a colony.
For the beekeeper, who cared for the bees for about almost a decade, the fire means building a fresh hive in the park from scratch.
But he insists he will continue his efforts.
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