An Australian tourist reported missing late last week near Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe has been absent for nearly a week, according to the latest information released by national park officials on Monday.
The 67-year-old tourist, whose identity remains undisclosed, was reported missing from the vicinity of Zimbabwe’s Victoria Falls National Park on Friday. Authorities initiated a search operation employing canine units to aid in the search efforts.
Tinashe Farawo, spokesperson for the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, confirmed on Monday that the missing individual was male and that the last contact with him occurred on February 17. The tourist, traveling solo, had been lodging at a luxury hotel approximately 3 kilometers from the rainforest park. On February 17, he informed hotel management of his intention to visit the park.
However, subsequent review of CCTV footage revealed no evidence of the man entering the park, nor was his presence recorded among those entering the park, as customary for accountability and security purposes, stated Mr. Farawo. “We have reviewed the footage, the physical records at the entrance to the falls have no record of him entering and our research team has checked the rainforest. There is no trace of him,” Mr. Farawo emphasized. “We are looking at other avenues because it appears he never entered the rainforest,” he added.
Incidents of this nature are uncommon at Victoria Falls, a renowned destination attracting tourists worldwide for its spectacular waterfall, which plunges over 108 meters from the Zambezi River into a gorge, creating a mist visible for miles.
The parks agency mobilized a team comprising police, rangers, sniffer dogs, professional ground trackers, and drones in pursuit of the missing Australian tourist on Friday, according to Mr. Farawo. Although rare, similar cases have been documented in other parks. Last October, a German tourist who went missing in the wildlife-rich Matusadona National Park in northern Zimbabwe was found alive and well three days later.
(AP)
