An elderly German hiker was found dead on the island of Crete Monday, the fire department said, the latest tourist fatality during a period of unseasonally high temperatures in Greece.
The man had been declared missing on Sunday and was found near a rugged ravine in the south of the island, the fire department said in a statement.
State news agency ANA said the area where the 68-year-old was found was so inaccessible that it could not be reached by helicopter and the body had to be moved by rescuers on foot.
It was the sixth fatality this month among foreign visitors to Crete and other popular Greek island destinations, following the death of BBC presenter Michael Mosley, whose body was found on Symi island on June 9.
An 80-year-old Belgian man was found dead near the ancient city of Lato in eastern Crete a few days later, followed by a 55-year-old Dutch man who was found dead in his car on the edge of a cliff in the island’s southeast on June 19, according to state TV ERT.
A 74-year-old Dutch man was found dead on the island of Samos on June 15, followed by a 55-year-old American man on the island of Corfu the following day.
In addition, two French women aged 73 and 64 have been missing on the island of Sikinos for over a week, while a 59-year-old American man visiting the island of Amorgos remains unaccounted for since June 11.
Greece’s public health authorities earlier this month issued warnings on the risk of heat exposure, advising against staying outdoors during the hottest hours of the day.
Greece on June 11-13 experienced its earliest summer heatwave on record, with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in many areas.
Similar temperatures near 40 degrees Celsius were recorded in various parts of the country last week.
Source: AFP
