Michele Ann Joy Bourda had been swimming at Ofrynio beach in the city of Kavala at around noon on Friday, August 1, before disappearing as authorities launched a large scale search
British authorities and Greek rescue teams are still searching for a missing 59-year-old woman after she vanished from her sunbed while visiting a beach in Greece.
Michele Ann Joy Bourda, a British national, disappeared from Ofrynio Beach, located in Kavala in northern Greece, on August 1. The beach, located on the Strymonian Gulf coast, is around 37 miles away from the northern Macedonian city of Serres, where Michele was temporarily living with her Greek husband.
She was lounging on a sunbed beside her husband who had fallen asleep when he awoke around midday to find her gone. Her personal belongings – including a beaded two‑piece swimsuit, yellow water shoes, and red (bone-rimmed) sunglasses – remained on the beach.
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Greek authorities quickly launched a large-scale search operation, deploying the Hellenic Coast Guard along with patrol boats, fishing vessels, and leisure craft to comb both the coastal waters and surrounding land areas.
The operation has expanded across the entire Strymonian Gulf, with no signs of Michele. It’s still unclear whether she went missing on land or in the sea.
Police teams searched the beach and adjacent terrain to no avail. On August 2, LifeLine Hellas, a Greek charity, issued a Silver Alert, typically activated for vulnerable adults, warning the public that Michele’s life may be at risk.
They urged anyone with information to contact the National SOS Line 1065. The British embassy in Athens confirmed they are supporting Michele’s family and local authorities.
A local sports instructor reported seeing a woman resembling Michele swimming in deep waters and cautioned her not to go further out. This remains the only confirmed sighting since her disappearance.
Michele Bourda, described as 5 feet 6 inches tall with straight blonde shoulder‑length hair and hazel eyes, had lived in Serres, northern Greece, with her husband for some time.
Neighbours described her as outdoorsy, and fond of wild swimming and walking. Authorities have not ruled out any scenario – including accidental drowning, disorientation, or foul play. A search focus on coastal areas has shifted over time, though patrols continue.
Michele’s neighbours maintain hope. One said: “She has always dressed in walking gear with a fleece and boots or a cagoule. She is really into the outdoors.”
One neighbour told Mail Online: “They’ve got bikes, and are quite active. They like to go walking, they like to go wild swimming.
“They would go, and they would often be away for the whole day in the summer, and then if we saw them coming in and out and they would say, ‘oh, we’ve been somewhere up north and we were swimming’. And I would see her sometimes sit and reading in the garden.”
Christos, who is Greek, had been sleeping and woke up to find Michele had vanished from the beach.
He reportedly warned locals that his wife was “not very well” and had “disappeared before” as he frantically asked for help trying to find her after she vanished from a Greek beach on Friday.
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