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Early Saturday morning, just before 2 a.m., a deputy with the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office came across several burning bee boxes and beehives, a spokesperson for the department told PEOPLE. The deputy quickly extinguished the flames, but the damage had already been done.
The sheriff’s office has not yet found a suspect, but are following several leads and said the investigation is “moving in a positive direction.”
The hives belonged to members of the Brazoria Beekeepers Association, according to a Facebook post they wrote on Saturday. The association is also askingfor donationsin the aftermath of the crime.
Brazoria County Beekeepers Association
“It’s bad enough to think in today’s world this would happen but dumping them over and then setting fire to them is beyond comprehension,” the organization wrote in the Facebook post.
“We appreciate everyone’s concern and outpouring of support,” the Beekeepers Association told PEOPLE, adding that about 20 hives that can all hold about 30,000 or more bees were destroyed in the fire.
“We’re looking at 500,000 to 600,000 [bees] that have been destroyed out of that environment,” Steve Brackmann, who sells beekeeping supplies, toldKTRK.
TheNew York Timesalso reported that 600,000 bees had been killed as a result of the fire.
“It takes a long time to establish a colony,” Brackmann added. “It can take a year to get a full one, but the queens were probably killed, which means those that survived have nowhere to go.”
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Brackmann also explained why bees are vital to a healthy environment.
“Tomatoes, squash, watermelons, bees pollinate those,” he told the outlet. “So if bees don’t pollinate those, you get zero vegetables, we would see next to nothing in the vegetable stores.”
“Beekeepers try to make a positive impact on their community. Keeping bees supports not only the environment in the form of pollination, but helps protect and preserve bees for years to come,” the Beekeepers Association said, in a similar sentiment.
The Brazoria County Crime Stoppers are offering a reward of up to $5,000 for any information that leads to an arrest. The sheriff’s office is encouraging anyone with information to send their tips to the Crime Stoppers at 1-800-460-2222 or theirwebsite.
source: people.com
