Jay Slater search narrows on barren caves at centre of mammoth hunt as cops ‘fear it’s unlikely he’ll be found alive’
THE SEARCH for missing Brit Jay Slater, now in its eleventh day, has honed in on a series of barren caves in a fresh location.
Police are worried the Lancashire teen will not be found alive if he did get lost in the mountains.
The hunt for Jay, who vanished ten days ago on Monday 17, has been focusing on rocky terrain in the mountains of northern Tenerife.
Days ago The Sun reported how cops had narrowed their search towards a 2,000ft ravine near the Rural de Teno park, Jay’s last known location.
Today it moved further along in the nature reserve, zoning in on a series of caves near Los Carrizales.
The new location is about an hour and a half on foot from the AirBnB Jay stayed in with two men, The Independent reports.
Los Carrizales is a small hamlet not far from Masca in the Teno mountains,
Authorities have said there are no plans to put a stop to the search yet, despite no signs of the 19-year-old.
The Civil Guard which has been leading the mammoth search operation said today it was continuing as normal.
But a well-placed source warned that it is “very unlikely Jay has survived if he got lost in the mountains”.
Specially trained sniffer dogs used to search for people over large expanses of land were flown in from Madrid and incorporated into the operation on Tuesday.
The force also released footage showing officers moving on foot through some of the rough and remote terrain.
Other cops could be seen carrying out aerial inspections from the Civil Guard helicopter.
The well-informed source added: “No-one at the moment is talking about the search being brought to an end, even though it’s very unlikely Jay has survived if he got lost in the mountains in the way we were told he did.
“There will be a point when the operation that’s taking place at the moment has to at least be scaled back but right now the search teams appear to have decided they want to give themselves more time.”
It comes as…
- Jay’s mum Debbie withdrawing GoFundMe cash to fly supporters out to Tenerife
- Ex-top cop who tracked down Raoul Moat reveals search theory
- Jay was attacked by gang when he was just 12
- New pics of Jay emerge at a pool party two days before he vanished
- Cops quiz locals who ‘saw Jay watching Euros’
- Investigator reveals descriptions of two men who partied with teen
- Crews scour exact spot where mystery ‘grainy figure’ was seen
- Tenerife cops plan TV appeal as they hunt for clues
- Pals blast conspiracy theorists and TikTok sleuths
- Jay’s mum says she’s ‘barely slept’
After going to a rave that finished in the early hours of June 17, Jay headed to Masca with two British men he had met that night.
He shared a final Snapchat from their Airbnb of a hand holding a cigarette at 7.30am.
Jay then tried to make his way back to his holiday accommodation – an 11 hour walk away.
But at around 8.50am he made a final frantic call to friend Lucy, telling her he was lost in the “middle of nowhere” with no water and had just one per cent battery on his phone.
It sparked a mammoth search operation involving helicopters, drones and sniffer dogs that has so far drawn blanks.
Rescue crews have been focusing their efforts on the 2,000ft Masca ravine in the north, where his phone last pinged a nearby cell tower.
Police have described the area they are scouring north of the Masca Gorge as “immense”.
A local woman called Anita warned it can take “months” to find any trace of a missing person in Tenerife.
She said tourists vanish every summer and rescue teams draw blanks as the “mountains are too difficult to search.”
It comes as The Sun today reported how cops in Tenerife were warned over a soaring number of disappearances before Jay vanished.
Today, Jay’s worried mum Debbie revealed she is withdrawing some of the £36,000 worth of donations raised amid the hunt for her son.
She said cash from the GoFundMe page will be used to fly out the “loved ones” of the “wonderful people” who are with her in Tenerife.
Heartbroken Debbie, 55, said money would also go towards the teams on their 11th day searching for Jay, as well as her family’s accommodation and food.
She wrote on the page this morning: “We are currently working with GoFundMe to withdraw part of the funds, which are being safely held.
“I wanted to share that these funds will be used to support the mountain rescue teams who are tirelessly searching for Jay.
“Additionally, since our stay in Tenerife needs to be extended, we will also use the funds to cover accommodation and food expenses.
“I’m surrounded by wonderful people who are by my side, but far from their loved ones, so we’ll also be using part of these funds to fly them to Tenerife so we can support each other during these dark times.”