New CCTV shows Michael Mosley leaving village for perilous 3-hour trek as mystery deepens over missing TV doc
NEW CCTV footage shows missing TV doctor Michael Mosley leaving a Greek village to embark on a “treacherous” three-hour trek.
A video released today appears to capture the 67-year-old carrying an umbrella walking through Pedi towards a rocky, hilly path at roughly 2pm on Wednesday.
It is now believed Dr Mosley left the beach at Saint Nikolas alone where he had been with his wife Clare and two friends before walking back alone without his mobile phone to Pedi.
He then carried on through the fishing village and headed towards a rocky path - setting off what would be a three-hour long trek in blazing temperatures of up to 37C.
Rescuers fear he may have taken a wrong turn while trying to get back to his accommodation in the town of Symi.
The new footage appears to show Mosley walking close to the marina in the small village and heading towards the hills in the northeast.
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"The man looks in good form and was walking steadily with no signs of disorientation," a police officer told the .
It is believed to be one of the last two CCTV sightings of Mosley, known for popularising the 5:2 diet and for his appearances on The One Show and This Morning, before he vanished.
CCTV released yesterday showed Dr Mosley entering the town by the Blue Corner cafe, while today's footage from a house's camera shows him leaving and heading for the mountain path.
It appears to support the theory that he headed into the hills, a decision which has been described as "inexplicable" by rescuers.
Rescue teams are now scouring a radius of up to 7km on the Greek island of Symi after their focus shifted last night.
It's a much larger and more dangerous region than the initial search area.
Greek police this morning revealed to The Sun that they have now centred the search on Agia Marina, 3km from Pedi where he was last seen.
The marina is only accessible by foot through a path that searchers describe as dangerous, or by water taxi.
It's like he went up there and the earth swallowed him up.
A rescuer
Police said officers, helicopters and drones have been deployed to the area as the search continues for its fourth scorching-hot day.
Symi's mayor Eleftherios Papakalodouka admitted to The Sun that they had been searching the wrong 2km area originally.
He also insisted there is ";no chance" the search will be called off - but said it could conclude today.
He warned no one "could survive" in the intense heat and barren conditions in hills near the village of Pedi.
Mosley's wife, Dr Clare Bailey, 62, spoke out today, stating: "We will not lose hope".
In her statement, she said:"It has been three days since Michael left the beach to go for a walk.
";The longest and most unbearable days for myself and my children."
She added that she was "incredibly grateful" to authorities and the people of Symi for their help in the search for her husband.
The last sighting of Mosley on CCTV appears to show him entering a mountainous walking route which the BBC star could have got lost on.
Search teams and the mayor both told The Sun the route can be incredibly “dangerous” and “treacherous” with no shade.
Mayor Papakalodouka told The Sun that Mosley had no water with him, adding: “You can’t survive in this weather.”
He continued: “He could have been walking for an hour.
“The search is covering a 7km stretch. The area is so difficult to walk. It’s so rocky.
“He wouldn’t have known where he was going. He could have got lost.
“Yesterday they were searching the wrong spot. We will not calm the search off but it could conclude today.”
The mountains on the north coast of the island were not being searched originally.
The Sun walked some of the route in the morning and found it doable but difficult at times to identify the pathway.
It was incredibly rocky and steep in places, and would have been harder in scorching hot conditions.
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Police began focusing on Agia Marina 3km away from Pedi, which has a little island off it, but then carried on round the walking route towards the port.
There is another path from Agia Marina which leads down into Symi but is not marked well. Guidebooks warn that it is “technically difficult” and easy to stumble and get lost.
Volunteers have also been helping the search.
Brits Sue and Jan, 68, who are on a walking trip, went out on Saturday to aid the search for Michael after completing the same walk on Tuesday, the day before he went missing.
Jan told The Sun: “We did the walk from Symi town When we heard we thought let’s go and do the walk again and look.
“We knew the area because we had just walked it. We were so close. We could see the area they were searching from where we’re staying."
Sue explained there is a main path which heads to Agia Marina, but also a less well-trodden path through a ridge which Sue said can act as a shortcut.
ANALYSIS: Retracing Dr Mosley's 'last steps'
By Ed Southgate in Symi
JUST 15 minutes into the walking route Michael Mosley is thought to have taken, I had stumbled, questioned where the path is and sweated a lot.
Locals and other tourists have said the walk is fine - although have warned about snakes - whereas search rescue teams have called it dangerous, treacherous and questioned why the TV doctor would have gone up in the searing midday heat.
While it is certainly doable, it is difficult.
The path is not well sign posted and two tourists, who went on the walk this week, said they had to check their map along the way.
But the mystery of where he has gone grows each day with locals baffled by how someone can disappear on the small island.
A helicopter has been flying low over the mountainous terrain while search teams have the challenging task of walking through the rocky terrain in the searing heat.
Today it reached 36C.
Concern over what could have happened and how is growing by the hour as he remains missing, with the search now in its fourth day.
But wife Clare, who called the last few days “unbearable”, has vowed: “We will not lose hope.”
A rescuer described Mosley's decision to take the three-hour mountain path as "inexplicable".
She told The Mirror: "The path is not easy to follow. If he took a wrong turn, he would be lost. He could be anywhere.
"It is a race against time."
Another rescuer told the outlet: "It's like he went up there and the earth swallowed him up."
A third rescuer said: "I don't think anything strange has happened to him. This is Symi: it's a very small island and people just don't disappear.
";There is always hope," they told the Mail.
The mayor also added that Mosley's wife has also been searching with other Brits,.
Their four adult children, who are said to be “stressed”, are understood to have arrived on the island yesterday evening.
Alexander, Jack, Daniel and Katherine are said to be planning to retrace their father's last steps to try and get to the bottom of what happened.
Mosley’s brother, Arthur, said yesterday: “We are very shocked and perplexed by what has happened. His children have now all gone to Greece and are walking the path trying to find him.
“Unfortunately, when you get to Michael’s age, accidents like this can happen.”
He told The Telegraph the family are "naturally hoping for a good outcome".
He added that his brother had been in “good spirits” when he last spoke to him as he travelled to Symi.
Timeline of Dr Mosley's disappearance
WEDNESDAY JUNE 5
- 1.30pm: Dr Mosley decides to walk home alone to his holiday home in the town of Symi after going for a swim at a beach
- 1.50pm: The walk home is said to take around 20 minutes from Saint Nikolaos beach despite the doctor never making it back
- 1.52pm: CCTV catches Dr Mosley walking past a shop in Pedi
- Approx 2.20pm: Witnesses claim to have seen Dr Mosley talking to an elderly man in the town with one other person present
- 2.30pm-5pm: Doc was last seen on a house camera on a treacherous path heading towards the Agia Marina
- 7.30pm: Dr Mosley's wife, Dr Clare Bailey, raises the alarm and calls cops
THURSDAY JUNE 6
- 10.30am: Police file missing person report and the search gets underway
- 11am: Police appeal for any information
- 2pm: Six firefighters, a vehicle and a drone team were all seen arriving in Symi from Rhodes
- 7pm: Helicopters deployed over the island
- 8pm: First day of the search called off for the night
FRIDAY JUNE 7
- 7am Extra police squadrons, coast guard officials, specially-trained sniffer dogs and military helicopters helped in the search
- 5pm The first CCTV images are released of Dr Mosley with his umbrella near the Blue Corner bar
SATURDAY JUNE 8
- 7am Police launch a search of a new area of around 7km as they step up the hunt
- 10.50am: New CCTV is released showing Mosley leaving Pedi and heading towards mountainous path
- 11am Symi's mayor says 'no chance' search will be called off until he is found
- 12pm Mosley's wife Clare says the family will 'not lose hope' but confesses the last few days have been 'unbearable'
- 3pm A helicopter joins the search effort in the mountains
WHAT HAPPENED?
The TV doctor went missing on Wednesday after leaving his wife and friends on Saint Nikolas beach.
He said he was feeling ill and would walk back alone.
CCTV images later emerged which show Dr Mosley in the town of Pedi, shielding himself from the sun with an umbrella.
The last sighting of Mosley was caught on CCTV at 2pm close to the entrance of a dangerous mountain path.
The route is a three-hour hike back to Symi Town, where he was staying with his wife Clare and another couple.
Mosley had not returned to his accommodation by 3pm despite temperatures soaring to 40C.
His wife raised the alarm at 7.30pm on Wednesday. His phone remained in their accommodation.
Overnight on Wednesday, local authorities began to trace Mosley's steps but were unable to locate him.
By 12pm on Thursday, cops were scouring the coast with the help of divers, drones, firefighters, volunteers and police dogs.
Police initially said the doctor may have "fallen from a height" or lost consciousness on the short hike home from the beach.
At 7pm, a helicopter was deployed to assist in the search.
The search resumed on Friday morning where temperatures reached 48C with all of Symi's patrol boats out searching.
Yesterday afternoon, new CCTV images of Mosley in Pedi emerged and by the evening cops shifted their search to a new mountainous route.
Mayor Papakaloudoukas added this morning that "all the community is so sad about this, [it has] never happened before".
'HUMAN BEINGS DON'T VANISH'
The son of a Brit who went missing on a Greek island in 2019 has urged Mosley's family not to give up as "humans don't just vanish".
John Tossell, a 78-year-old from Wales, went missing on Zakynthos five years ago this month.
Tossell vanished after leaving his partner, Gillian, to hike to a monastery on Mount Skopos.
The Brit father was described as a "fit man" who could have easily managed the route.
Gary criticised police for calling off the search after only five days.
Despite his family continuing the search themselves, no trace of Tossell was ever found.
Gary said: "He went for a walk and he vanished into thin air...It's the same story but a different person."
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Gary added that he knows how "awful" Mosley's family must feel, saying: "I want to tell them not to give up."
He added: "Human beings don't just vanish."
Who is Dr Michael Mosley?
BY Henry Holloway, Deputy Foreign Editor
DR MICHAEL Mosley is a TV presenter and health expert known for his work with the BBC - with regular appearances on The One Show.
He is a diet expert who advocated for intermittent fasting, low-carb diets and has written books promoting keto.
Born in India, he studied philosophy, politics and economics and worked as a banker before graduating from medical school.
He joined the BBC in 1985 as an assistant producer, and quickly rose through the ranks - becoming a popular presenter.
Dr Michael worked on programmes such The Human Face with Professor Robert Winston - and Inventions that Changed The World with Jeremy Clarkson.
Eventually fronting his own shows and regularly appearing on breakfast television, he gained a reputation as a diet guru.
He also hosted the BBC podcast Just One Thing.
The TV star is married to Clare Bailey, a GP, and they have four children.