The lifeless body of a 68-year-old tourist from Germany was found on Monday (June 24.06) in an inaccessible area, in a gorge near Chania in Crete. It is about a man who spent his vacation with his wife on the largest Greek island. He planned to do a mountain tour from the Omalos plateau to Sougia on the Libyan Sea. The total distance is 24,5 kilometers and it takes approximately eight hours to walk. It is not a particularly difficult tour if you prepare well and the weather is favorable.

In this case, neither of those two conditions seem to be met. It is assumed that the tourist lost his orientation due to the great heat and went in the wrong direction, towards inaccessible terrain. He probably didn't have enough water. When he did not answer his wife on Sunday (June 23.06), she reported him as missing. A rescue operation was started immediately with the participation of firefighters and rescue teams. After several hours, the rescuers managed to locate the signal from his mobile phone and found his body.

This is the sixth tourist who died in June 2024 while hiking in Greece. And at least three people are missing - a 59-year-old retired American police officer on the island, as well as two French women who are 64 and 73 years old on the island of Sikinos.

Record temperatures

Something like this is not remembered in the sixth month in Greece. Usually this is the summer month with the lowest temperatures. That is why older foreign tourists come at that time. In June, it is even possible to walk and hike along the bare Cyclades, because later it is impossible.

This June the temperatures are record high. Some tourists ignore it and pay with their head. And the heat wave does not stop. In some areas, such as Samos, the temperature rose to 40 degrees. In Chania on Crete, even 44,5 degrees were measured.

Christos Yanaros, is the main coordinator of the research project "Heat Alarm" in Athens. He explains that the victims were exposed to heat stress, which was caused by unusually high temperatures in early June and the physical exertion of walking. At the same time, the fact that it is about older people is decisive:

"Older people accumulate heat in the body more easily and it is harder to get rid of it. That's why they develop symptoms of heatstroke more easily."

And in that case, it's easier to lose your orientation and sense of time, so you expose yourself to danger faster.

In addition, the largest number of tourists come from countries with a colder climate. Upon arrival in Greece, they are immediately exposed to high temperatures, without time for acclimatization. And, it is necessary even for the local population, doctors warn. Normally, the human body should gradually get used to the warmer days during spring. But when the heat wave comes so early and with such force, it is dangerous for people's health.

Deadly carelessness

The behavior of some adult tourists who ignore warnings despite the heat is inexplicable. Numerous tourists have complained about the decision of the Athenian authorities to close the Acropolis during the hottest hours, so that people do not pass out from the heat.

In this hot June, some tourists were not prepared for the trips they went on. According to the Greek media, some of the tourists did not even know if the road was steep or how long it was. Others went hiking right after lunch, with a full stomach, alcohol in their blood and in unbearable heat. Some did not bring a mobile phone. Others thought the signal couldn't be lost, relied on internet maps and got lost.

Death of a journalist

The case of the famous British doctor and journalist Michael Mosley was particularly tragic. Sixty-seven-year-old Moseley was also a presenter for the BBC. He spent his vacation on the East Aegean island of Symi. On 05.06.2024/XNUMX/XNUMX, he set out on foot from the town of Agios Nikolaos to the village of Pedi. He only had a bottle of water and no mobile phone. It disappeared. It was later officially said that he "went the wrong way" and fell in a hard-to-reach place.

Rescue teams, firefighters, police and civil protection searched for him for four days. Sniffer dogs, drones and even a helicopter were also hired. Eventually, he was found dead just a few meters from his favorite beach with lots of people and bars. Unfortunately, it was hidden by a high wall.

Two Israeli citizens were more fortunate. They got lost on Mount Mainalo in Arcadia, in the Peloponnese. They were found far from their target, the village of Vitine. Fortunately, they were alive and well.

Source: Deutsche Welle/ Author: Khaki Bali