Holy shit. That’s crazy. Normally if there is live bees with a colony they are still viable. It’s possible they have “foul brood” which is a disease that kills bee larvae in essence killing the colony. It can be spread, so that may be a reason to toss it (and all affected bees) into a fire. Here is a link for a bit more reading: http://agriculture.vic.gov.au/agriculture/pests-diseases-and-weeds/animal-diseases/bees/what-to-do-if-you-detect-or-suspect-american-foulbrood