ANOTHER tourist dies during a sweltering heatwave in Greece – the sixth since the death of Dr Michael Mosley – while two more remain missing as the country is ravaged by temperatures of 44 degrees Celsius and forest fires
Another tourist has died during Greece’s sweltering heatwave – the latest fatality as the country was battered by temperatures of 44 degrees Celsius and ravaged by forest fires.
The 67-year-old German was found dead in Crete, police said on Monday – the sixth tourist death since Mail columnist Dr Michael Mosley was killed on another Aegean island earlier this month.
Like Dr Mosley, the man had gone out alone on Sunday for a walk in a gorge in the Sougia region. After a few hours he called his wife to report that he was not feeling well.
“A search and rescue operation was immediately launched and a special drone rescue unit spotted the man’s body in the Trypiti gorge,” a police official said.
There has been a spate of deaths and disappearances among tourists during June’s unusual heatwave, with many of the victims going missing while hiking, highlighting the dangers of exposure to temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius or more.
A local resident holds bottles of water next to a forest fire in the village of Latas, southern Greece, June 21, 2024
People try to keep cool at the seaside in the coastal area of Arvanitia, of Nafplio, Peloponnese, Greece, June 21, 2024
Dr. Michael Mosley died on June 5 on the Greek island of Symi. His body was found on June 9
A frantic search is underway for former LA Police Department deputy Albert Calibet, who was last seen hiking on the small island of Amorgos.
Rescue teams continue to search for two French women aged 73 and 64 on the island of Sikinos.
Frantic searches are also underway for 59-year-old retired LA cop Albert Calibet, who went missing while on holiday on the island of Amorgos last Tuesday.
A 55-year-old American was found dead on the Greek island of Mathraki in the Ionian Sea last week, and a Dutch tourist was found dead on the Aegean island of Samos earlier this month.
The body of British TV presenter Dr. Mosley was found on Symi on June 9 after a four-day search involving planes, drones and boats. He had gone for a walk alone in high temperatures before he went missing.
It comes as massive bushfires rage across the country, which is at ‘very high risk’ of bushfires due to hot and dry conditions.
Greek firefighters said on Monday they remained on high alert, fearing that sweltering temperatures and strong winds could reignite dozens of forest fires that started over the weekend, razing almost 9,000 hectares of lush forestland.
The warning comes as 13 crew members of a luxury superyacht are due to appear in court on Wednesday to testify in connection with arson after they set off several rounds of fireworks over the popular holiday island of Hydra late Friday, sparking a massive forest fire and destroyed the island’s only port. pine forest.
If there is intent, the suspects – nine men and four women – could each face up to 20 years in prison and heavy fines of 200,000 euros, judicial officials said.
Clouds of smoke rise above a forest fire near a villa on the island of Andros in a photo taken last week
A general view of a forest fire on Hydra island, Greece, June 21, 2024
The thirteen, all Greeks, were charged on Sunday. They were granted a 48-hour extension on Wednesday to testify before a prosecutor in the port city of Piraeus. They remain in custody and the luxurious 58-metre three-deck Persefoni I has been seized by authorities.
Fire department officials leading the investigation said the fire started late Friday when crew members set off an unknown number of firecrackers to entertain their guests, believed to be Kazakh nationals. Their whereabouts remained unknown.
The prosecution of the crew members is a litmus test for the centre-right government and the tough legislation it introduced earlier this year after 20 people died last summer in a wave of forest fires that gripped Greece – the worst in recent history.
A terrifying forest fire has broken out on a Greek island after fireworks were shot off from a yacht
A view of a yacht (R) whose crew members allegedly started a forest fire with fireworks launched from the ship on the island of Hydra, at a marina in the southern suburbs of Athens, Greece, June 23, 2024
More than 300 stremmas (74 acres) of lush pine forest on Hydra were destroyed by the fire stoked by the superyacht’s crew. in response to what he called the crew’s “reckless behavior.”
A total of 107 fires have raged across Greece since then, leaving several parts of the country, including the capital Athens, on ‘Code 3’ alert.
On Monday, authorities said they had managed to contain all the fires. But rising temperatures expected to top 38 degrees from Tuesday will put other regions into risk zones, authorities said, including the island of Crete, a popular tourist destination among British sun seekers.
Firefighters try to control blaze in Greece as the country faces a ‘very high risk’ of forest fires
A view of an area damaged by a forest fire on the island of Hydra, Greece, June 22, 2024
“We call for extreme vigilance,” said Vassilis Vathraoyiannis, a spokesman for the Greek fire brigade. ‘Anything above level 3 means reinforcements are on the way, ready to intervene in any possible crisis.
“No firefighter is allowed to take leave.”
Greece has been on high alert for forest fires since Tuesday and authorities are bracing for a difficult summer as dry conditions, strong winds and high temperatures continue into the coming month.
Tourists with an umbrella walk in front of the Parthenon on the ancient Acropolis in the center of Athens, Wednesday, June 12, 2024
Summer forest fires are common in Greece and authorities here have linked the rise in numbers to the intensity of extreme weather events, including heat waves, and climate change.
However, arson remains acute across the country, with at least 79 people arrested over deadly bushfires last August.
The Mediterranean country recorded its first heat wave of the year last week, with temperatures exceeding 44 degrees Celsius in some locations.
Last year, a two-week intense heat wave was followed by devastating forest fires that killed twenty people.