Five foreign tourists have either gone missing or been found deceased on the Greek islands.
An American tourist was discovered dead on Sunday on a beach of Mathraki Island. This incident marks the latest in a series of tragedies involving foreign tourists in the picturesque vacation destination over the past week, as confirmed by local authorities.
The body of the American visitor was found around 1:30 p.m. local time near Mathraki Island’s old port, according to the president of the Mathraki Island community speaking to the News Channels. The exact cause of death has not yet been disclosed.
The man was last seen at a tavern in Mathraki, located west of Corfu Island, where he had been staying with a Greek American friend, investigators informed News Channels. Concern arose when the friend returned home on Thursday to find the house door open, lights on, and air conditioning running, but with no trace of the missing American or his personal documents.
As Mathraki lacks its own police station or coast guard, authorities from Corfu were summoned to aid in the investigation. A coroner was expected to arrive on Sunday to conduct an initial inquiry on the island, after which the body would be transported to nearby Corfu Island for an autopsy, officials mentioned.
This marks the second instance within a week of an American tourist reported missing in the Greek Isles.
Meanwhile, the search continued for a retired Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy who went missing on Tuesday on the Greek Island of Amorgos. The 59-year-old retired deputy, identified as Albert Calibet from Hermosa Beach, California, failed to return from a hike and was the subject of an ongoing search effort, officials reported.
Drone footage obtained by ABC Los Angeles station KABC depicted rescue teams combing the rugged terrain where Calibet was believed to have been hiking.
“We’re devastated, knowing he’s somewhere out there,” said Calibet’s girlfriend, Debbie Leshane, in an interview with KABC. Leshane recounted that Calibet had called her shortly before embarking on his hike, and had sent her a photo from the trailhead sign around 9:20 a.m. local time on Tuesday. This was the last contact she had with him.
In a separate incident reported by The Associated Press, a 74-year-old Dutch tourist who had been missing was found deceased on the eastern Greek island of Samos. Firefighters, using a drone, located the Dutch national lying face down in a ravine about 330 yards away from where he was last seen walking.
Authorities noted that the Dutch tourist had been observed experiencing difficulties while hiking in the intense heat that has engulfed the islands recently.
It appears that some of the tourists who went missing or were found deceased had been hiking in extremely hot temperatures.
On June 9, Dr. Michael Mosley, a well-known British TV presenter and author, was found deceased on the island of Symi. A coroner’s report indicated that he had likely died around June 5, shortly after embarking on a hike across hazardous, rocky terrain.
