Search begins for British hikers missing in northern Italy since New Year’s Day
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Aziz Ziriat, 36, and Samuel Harris, 35, were ‘planning on going off-grid’ during holiday in the Dolomites. A search is under way for a pair of British hikers in the Dolomites in northern Italy who have been missing since New Year’s Day. Aziz Ziriat, 36, and Samuel Harris, 35, last sent messages home on 1 January from the Trentino region. They have not been heard from since. The pair, who are both from London, did not check in to their flight home on 6 January.
On Tuesday, Crystal Palace’s official charity, Palace for Life, where Ziriat worked, appealed for anyone who knew the area they went missing in and could help to call 999 with the reference: CAD 0197/07 Jan25. According to the BBC, Alpine Rescue, Guardia di Finanza Rescue, police and the local fire brigade are all involved in the search but, owing to recent snowfall, they are having difficulty reaching the area.
Palace for Life said the pair’s last known location is believed to be near a hut called Casina Dosson which is near the town Tione di Trento, near Riva del Garda, on Lake Garda. They shared a picture of Harris wearing a grey T-shirt and black trousers, with a red jacket tied around his waist, saying this may have been the last outfit he wore before going missing.
Rebecca Dimmock, Ziriat’s girlfriend, told the BBC the pair were “experienced hikers” who were “planning on going off-grid”. “They wanted to do a new year’s hike. They wanted to go from hut to hut throughout the Dolomites. They were planning on going off-grid, so that’s not unexpected at all.
