Beekeeper devastated after 300,000 drowned during 'horrific' New Year's Day flooding
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GB News
A hobby beekeeper has been left devastated after New Year's Day flooding in Greater Manchester killed more than 300,000 bees at his plot near the River Mersey.
Daniel Kershaw, 40, from Heaton Moor, lost nearly all his colonies when floodwaters ravaged his beekeeping site in Cheadle, where he has been breeding bees for three years alongside his mentor Simon.
The pair discovered a scene of complete destruction days after the flooding, with 12 beehives washed away and contaminated by flood water from the partially burst river banks.
The flooding struck on January 1, causing widespread damage across Cheadle and nearby Didsbury as the River Mersey overflowed its banks.
The hives were destroyed in the widespread flooding
GoFundMe
The local bees, which had been carefully bred for 13 years, were almost completely wiped out when relentless rain struck the area.
"The rain was horrendous," Kershaw told the Manchester Evening News. "I saw the videos online of the Tesco nearby and the carnage the flooding had caused."
The entire plot remained inaccessible for several days due to the extensive flooding. When Kershaw and Simon finally reached the site, they found their wooden beehives broken and waterlogged on the ground, with the entire area having been submerged.
"If you look after the bees, they pollenate and make more flowers and it's all part of the cycle, but when the climate change, the thing your trying to prevent, happens and everything gets destroyed, it's gutting," Kershaw said.
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There was widespread flooding across the UK at the start of the year
PA
He continued: "We've lost 12 hives which have been washed away and contaminated with the flood water. They all drowned."
Each beehive can house between 50,000 bees in winter, when they cluster around the queen to keep her warm, and up to 200,000 in summer months. The financial impact has been severe, with each beehive costing approximately £400, not including the bees themselves.
Throughout the year, Kershaw and Simon maintain the hives and plot, selling their honey to local customers in the Manchester area.
The flooding has destroyed an estimated 360,000 bees in total, leaving the beekeepers to rebuild their operation almost from scratch.
The beekeepers have launched a GoFundMe page to help rebuild their colonies, working from a single remaining hive that was spared at another location.
"We've got one nuke left, so I am going to have to start breeding again. It took me three years to get where I was and it's been wiped out," Kershaw said.
On the fundraising page, he emphasised the importance of bees to the ecosystem, noting they are "integral" for pollinating flowers, trees and crops, while highlighting that UK bee populations are already in severe decline.
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