An Australian tourist who vanished late last week in Zimbabwe, near Victoria Falls, had been missing for nearly a week, according to the national park officials.
The 67-year-old tourist, whose identity has not been disclosed, went missing from the vicinity of Victoria Falls National Park.
At that time, authorities stated that a search was ongoing using dogs that detect scents.
A spokesman for the Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Management Authority, Tinashe Farawo, was quoted by AP as confirming that the missing tourist had not been seen or heard from since February 17.
The solo tourist was staying at an opulent hotel, which is three kilometres from the rainforest park.
Farawo said that he indicated to the hotel administration on February 17 that he would be visiting the park.
He said the man in question was not captured on CCTV footage that was subsequently reviewed, nor was he among those identified as accessing the park.
“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,” said Farawo.
“We are looking at other avenues because it appears he never entered the rainforest.”
Occurrences of this nature are uncommon at Victoria Falls, a globally renowned attraction prized for its magnificent water curtain, which cascades over 108 metres from the Zambezi River to a gorge below, obscuring the surrounding area in a mist that can be seen for miles.