A retired Los Angeles County deputy is missing on a Greek island after taking off for a hike Tuesday.
Eric Albert Calibet, 59, has not been seen since Tuesday, according to the Greek Reporter.
Calibet went for a hike on the island of Amorgos that should have taken him about four hours. After he did not answer either of his two cell phones, his disappearance was reported to the police.
“It is strange because he is not a person who walked the route for the first time. He knows Amorgos better than me,” Calliope Despotidi, the deputy mayor of Amorgos, said.
“Calibet is well-known on the island. He has been visiting for several years,” she said, adding that he had completed the hike he went on Tuesday several times in the past.
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Despotidi said she hoped that taking shelter from the heat is the reason he has not been heard from.
“He may have lost consciousness because of the heat and hopefully found shade in one of the caves along the route,” she said.
Drones and searchers are both combing the northern part of the island for the missing hiker, according to the BBC.
“I don’t know,” the missing man’s brother, Oliver Calibet, said, according to KTTV-TV. “My hands are tied.”
“We’re almost on three days here,” said Oliver. “There’s no water… I’m very distraught.”
Oliver Calibet and his brother’s girlfriend, Debbie LaShane, arrived in Greece on Friday, according to ABC.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with Deputy Calibet’s family and friends and our hope is that we can bring him home safely,” Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said.
The search is expanding for a retired L.A. County sheriff’s deputy who went missing in Greece this week. Albert Calibet, of Hermosa Beach, was last seen while hiking on the island of Amorgos during a blistering heat wave. pic.twitter.com/WkmJC2iaxT
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) June 14, 2024
“We are actively collaborating with multiple agencies abroad to provide assistance in the search for Deputy Calibet and will use every resource we have available to bring him back to those who love him,” Luna said.
According to ABC, about two hours into his hike, Calibet downed a soft drink and bought a bottle of water for the rest of the journey.
“Temperatures are very high, like all of Greece during the heatwave,” Despotidi said.
“We’re guessing he felt dizzy… and collapsed somewhere. It’s odd because he’s not someone who was walking this route for the first time,” she said.
