Over 100 cases of missing adults and elderly individuals are reported annually, according to data from the NGO “Lifeline.” During the four-year period from 2021 to 2024, 450 disappearances were recorded.
Approximately 87% of those reported missing are eventually found alive. Most unresolved cases involve elderly individuals with dementia. Others are either found deceased or remain unaccounted for.
In 2021, more than 10 disappearances were reported each month. A total of 125 cases were recorded, with 64 people found alive and 27 deceased.
In 2022, 102 cases were reported. Of these, 65 individuals were found alive, 14 deceased, and no trace was found of the remaining cases.
The Silver Alert, operated by “Lifeline,” is the national program coordinating citizen alerts for missing elderly and adult individuals.
In 2023, 117 missing elderly and adult individuals were reported to Silver Alert. Of these, 76 were found alive, and 13 were found deceased. In 2024, 106 cases were reported, with 54 found alive and 26 deceased.
Over the past four years, an additional 374 disappearances were reported to the Silver Alert service, but these individuals were located by their relatives or authorities before the Social Alarm was activated.
“Lifeline” has been operating since 2011, collaborating with the Hellenic Police missing persons units, the fire department, EMAK (Special Disaster Response Units), judicial and forensic authorities, and hospitals.
However, according to Panagiotis Kourouklis, founder of “Lifeline,” hospitals often fail to respond effectively. When individuals, whether alive or deceased, arrive without identification, hospitals frequently do not contact social services to begin the identification process. As a result, many of these individuals remain unidentified.
