Half a Million Honeybees Killed in Netherlands Fire Incident.
A beekeeper from the Netherlands has voiced shock after his ten colonies were set ablaze in a public garden in the central city of Almere, resulting in the death of an estimated 500,000 bees.
The beekeeper stated that each hive housed a population of forty to sixty thousand bees, and the idea that someone could kill them was horrific.
"It really hurts that my 10 hives have died," he informed local broadcaster.
Police in Almere, located to the northeast of Amsterdam, have requested observers 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 nation's 360 types of bee are at threat of dying out, as the number of bees declines around the world.
The beekeeper explained that police had informed him an accelerant had been used to ignite the colonies, which were placed on pallets in a forested area of the park.
Barely any of the bees made it through and he said that he had little faith the perpetrator would be apprehended.
Another apiarist Heleen Nieman told Dutch radio that she had three bee colonies and planned to give him a colony.
For the beekeeper, who looked after the bees for about almost a decade, the incident means building a new colony in the area from scratch.
But he affirms he will not give up.
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