A British tourist has gone missing on the island of Rhodes, Greece since he went swimming on Wednesday afternoon. His family has alerted local authorities.
According to local media, the 48-year-old man who is vacationing with his family went to Theologos Beach with his niece for a swim. His niece left the beach earlier to return to the hotel.
When she realized that hours had gone by and her uncle had not yet returned, she went back to the beach to look for him, but the man was nowhere to be found.
The family notified authorities who have since begun a search in the area. The Rhodes Coast Guard has also alerted boats sailing along the beach.
Foreign tourists missing in Greece
There have been several cases of foreign tourists who have gone missing on Greek islands this season, the hottest summer in decades. Sadly, all of them were found dead days later.
In early June, British BBC presenter Michael Mosley was found dead on the island of Symi after a five-day-long search. His body was discovered in the rocky Agia Marina area, where he was last seen in a CCTV video.
The British man likely either got dizzy or passed out due to the intense heat. Or he could have slipped and fallen near a fence, the fall causing him to lose his life. Symi Mayor Eleftherios Papakaloudoukas found Mosley’s body.
During the search temperatures in the area had reached 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) and it is likely that the man passed out from a heat stroke and later died from the intense heat.
American, Dutch, and French among the heat victims
In late June, a British national was found dead in the Old Port on the island of Spetses. He was identified as a 44-year-old man, a member of a sailing boat crew, participating in the Classic Regatta that took place on the island.
Also in late June, a 67-year-old German tourist went missing, later to be found dead, after embarking on a hike in a mountainous region of Crete.
In July, a 20-year-old South African was found dead by the Coast Guard near Kefalonia island. The young man was working in one of the boat companies and disappeared after he went for a swim. He never returned to the boat.
Another British tourist died from the heat while swimming. The 66-year-old British woman succumbed to the harsh heatwave while swimming at Achladies beach on Skiathos island, adding to the number of such casualties in Greece.
The death of the British woman, 66, marked yet another victim of the enduring heatwave that has hit Greece this summer.
A 58-year-old American tourist on Amorgos island and two French women – 64 and 73 years old – on Sikinos island lost their lives in this hottest of summers.
[This is a developing story.]
