The Disappearance of a British Woman in Greece
A British woman, Michele Ann Joy Bourda, 59, went missing from a beach in Kavala, Greece, after she was last seen swimming and then vanishing while her husband slept. This incident has sparked an extensive search by land and sea, with Greek authorities working tirelessly to locate her.
Michele had been at Ofrynio beach in Kavala around noon on Friday when she suddenly disappeared. An image shared by Greek media shows the last known sighting of Mrs. Bourda, enjoying a snack with her husband, Christos, at a nearby cafe three hours before she vanished. The couple had spent several hours at the beach, where Mr. Bourda fell asleep, only to wake up and find his wife missing from the sunlounger. Her belongings were still there, raising concerns about her sudden disappearance.
According to reports, a sports instructor claimed to have seen a woman resembling Mrs. Bourda swimming in deep waters and urged her not to go further. However, sources now suggest that she was seen walking away from the scene in northern Greece, according to Ilia Live.
This is not the first time Mrs. Bourda has gone missing. In 2020, following a dismissal from work, she vanished in London before being found by the police. Recently, she has been reported to be suffering from health problems, which has increased her husband's anxiety about her current whereabouts.
In the photograph from the beach cafe, Mrs. Bourda is shown wearing a dark swimming costume and sunglasses, appearing calm as she chats with her husband, who is pictured wearing a white cap. When he woke up and noticed she was gone, he approached a nearby shop owner, revealing that his wife "was not very well."
The shop owner told Greek outlet Protothema: "The couple were together, and at some point, the husband fell asleep, and it seems that the wife went in to swim. When the husband woke up and didn't see her next to him, he came to the store and asked us if we had seen his wife, who had disappeared. He also told us that his wife was not very well, and that she had problems."
The shop keeper added that Mr. Bourda was "a bit stressed" and mentioned that his wife had disappeared before, saying, "She had gotten lost again and that she wasn't very well, the woman had problems."
Police have been conducting searches on land, while Greece’s Hellenic Coast Guard has been scouring the sea. However, the central port authority in Kavala paused its targeted search and rescue efforts on Monday night. A Silver Alert was issued, warning that Mrs. Bourda may be in danger. Silver Alerts are typically used to notify citizens about the disappearance of elderly individuals, especially those with dementia or Alzheimer's.
"Her life is in danger. If you know anything, contact the Silver Alert service, 24 hours a day, at the National SOS Line 1065," the alert by the Greek missing persons charity, Lifeline Hellas, said.
While Greek media refer to the woman as a tourist, there is speculation that the couple may have been living locally in a village in Serres. Neighbors in Glasgow describe Mrs. Bourda as timid but adventurous, often seen walking with her husband in outdoor gear. They would go on long walks and wild swims, often returning late in the day.
A map shows how the 10.5-mile-long Greek beach where Mrs. Bourda vanished is surrounded by expansive fields, residential houses, and a large fishing pond. She was last seen wearing a rhinestone-embellished two-piece beaded swimsuit, yellow beach shoes, and red horn-rimmed sunglasses. She is described as being 5ft 6in tall, slim, with blue eyes and shoulder-length hair.
The Daily Mail contacted the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) for comment on whether the UK Government was assisting in the search for Ms. Bourda. This comes after a 60-year-old British tourist went missing in June while on holiday in Greece. His hired car was found abandoned on the island of Karpathos in 38C heat, and he was last seen by the owner of his rented accommodation on June 27.
Meanwhile, fears are growing for a British woman who disappeared from a Spanish tourist hotspot last week. Jennifer Frances Lacey, 41, vanished from the municipality of Vera on Monday, July 28. Her disappearance was reported by the SOS Missing Persons Association on Thursday, and she is described as measuring 5ft 2in, having curly brown hair, blue eyes, and wearing prescription glasses.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesman told the Daily Mail: "We are supporting the family of a British woman who was reported missing in Spain."
At least ten foreign tourists were found dead or disappeared last year in Greece while going for a hike, often in high temperatures, according to the New York Times. It also comes days after the search for an elderly British man who went missing on a trip to ancient Turkish tombs ended in tragedy.
Following a three-day search in and around the ancient tombs of Kaunos in Turkey for the 79-year-old, investigators found a body. The man was reported missing by his daughter, who he travelled with to Çandır, a village in Muğla's Köyceğiz district in southwestern Turkey, for a holiday together on July 26. At 10.30am that day, her father began a trip by rowboat to the nearby rock-cut temple tombs of Kaunos, also known as the Lycian rock tombs, but she lost contact with him and has not heard from him since.
Following his daughter's report, Turkish authorities launched a search for the man with a 19-person team, consisting of the Köyceğiz Gendarmerie District Command, Muğla AFAD, and an NGO. An investigation is now underway to understand exactly how the man went missing.