The search for a 40-year-old man who went missing while rafting in Tryfos Gorge near Vonitsa, in western Greece, ended in tragedy. His body was found by rescue crews Thursday morning, prompting a major recovery operation as he was located in a remote and difficult-to-access part of the gorge.
The ordeal began on Wednesday when the 40-year-old and a friend were rafting through the gorge. Under circumstances that remain unclear, the two men were involved in an accident and went missing. The survivor managed to call Greece’s emergency number, 112, alerting authorities and triggering a large-scale search and rescue operation.
Eighteen firefighters were deployed to the scene, including a team from the Water Search and Rescue Department, the Mountain Search and Rescue Unit of the 6th Special Disaster Response Unit (EMAK), a team from the 6th Forest Fire Operations Unit (EMODE), and a drone team from the Region of Western Greece.
Rescuers located the first man and used ropes to pull him to safety after he became trapped on rocks. He then indicated the likely location of his friend, and emergency crews continued searching the area carefully until late Wednesday night.
The search resumed on Thursday morning, when rescuers found the body of the 40-year-old.
His body was retrieved Thursday afternoon.
The exact circumstances of the fatal accident are being investigated by the competent authorities.
