Half a Million Honeybees Killed in Dutch Arson Attack.
A beekeeper from the Netherlands has expressed dismay after his ten colonies were burned down in a public garden in the central city of Almere, resulting in the death of an estimated 500,000 bees.
Harold Stringer stated that each hive housed a population of 40-60,000 bees, and the idea that anyone could destroy them was devastating.
"It really hurts that my ten colonies have perished," he told local broadcaster.
Police in Almere, located to the northeast of Amsterdam, have appealed for observers 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 more than half of the nation's 360 species of bee are at risk of dying out, as the number of bees decreases around the world.
Mr Stringer explained that authorities had informed him an flammable substance had been employed to ignite the colonies, which were placed on wooden platforms in a wooded part of the park.
Almost none of the insects survived and he noted that he had little faith the arsonist would be apprehended.
Fellow beekeeper a local beekeeper stated on national radio that she had three hives and planned to donate one of them.
For the beekeeper, who cared for the bees for about almost a decade, the fire means building a new colony in the park from scratch.
But he affirms he will not give up.
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