Dutch woman (65) missing on Greek island of Samos
updateA Dutch woman has been missing on Samos since Thursday. A search operation has been launched by local emergency services. A Dutch drone team and a rescue dog brigade will travel to the Greek island on Saturday morning.
The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms the disappearance of the 65-year-old woman and says it is providing consular assistance. On X, Brigitte van Gennip's daughter reports that she was last contacted on Thursday morning at 10:30.
According to Greek media, Van Gennip had called a friend to let her know that she was going for a walk near the Tunnel of Eupalinos. The walk would start and end in Pythagorion, where she was staying in a hotel. However, there has been no contact with her since that call and her mobile phone is said to have been switched off. Her phone has since been found, but there is still no trace of the woman herself.
"She has not had any contact with the friend she is on holiday with, and knowing her she would never do anything risky," the daughter writes on X. "So I am very concerned."
A Greek rescue organization reported on Thursday that a search and rescue operation was underway. According to Greek media, the Greek rescue team, the police and the fire department have been mobilized for this purpose. A rescue dog and a drone team have also been deployed. A Dutch drone team and a rescue dog brigade will travel to Samos on Saturday morning to help with the search. The woman's family has asked the organizations to help with the search.
The search team of the National Drone Team and Stichting MTL consists of two drone pilots, two search dog handlers and a coordinator. "The circumstances are worrying, but we continue to hope for a positive outcome," according to the search team. The family and friends of the missing woman have started a crowdfunding to be able to pay for the search. By the end of the afternoon on Friday, 9850 of the desired 15,000 euros had already been raised.
Een Nederlandse vrouw is sinds donderdag vermist op Samos. Er is een zoekactie gestart door de lokale hulpdiensten. Een Nederlands droneteam en een reddingshondenbrigade reizen zaterdagochtend af naar het Griekse eiland.
www.ad.nl