500,000 Bees Perish in Dutch Fire Incident.
A Dutch beekeeper has expressed dismay after his ten colonies were burned down in a park in the city of Almere, resulting in the death of an estimated 500,000 bees.
Harold Stringer mentioned that every colony housed a population of 40-60,000 bees, and the thought that someone could destroy them was devastating.
"It really hurts that my 10 hives have died," he told regional media.
Police in Almere, which sits to the east of Amsterdam, have appealed for witnesses after the deliberate fire on Tuesday night in the city's scenic Beatrixpark. They posted images of the blaze on online platforms.
The Dutch government says that over 50% of the nation's 360 species of bee are at threat of extinction, as the population of bees declines around the world.
The beekeeper explained that police had told him an flammable substance had been employed to ignite the hives, which were placed on wooden platforms in a wooded part of the park.
Barely any of the bees survived and he said that he had little faith the perpetrator would be caught.
Fellow beekeeper a local beekeeper stated on national radio that she had three hives and planned to give him one of them.
For Mr Stringer, who cared for the bees for about almost a decade, the incident means starting a fresh hive in the area from scratch.
But he affirms he will continue his efforts.
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