Search for missing Jay Slater enters fourth day as emergency services scour Tenerife hills
Granada Reports correspondent Andy Bonner sent the latest developments from the Tenerife
The search for missing teenager Jay Slater has entered its fourth day as emergency crews continue to scour the Tenerife mountains.
Jay, from Oswaldtwistle, in Lancashire, disappeared after telling a friend he "didn't know where he was" and needed water, after beginning an 11-hour trek back to his hotel.
The 19-year-old failed to return home after going to stay in an area on the north of the island with people he had met on a night out following the NRG music festival.
He was last seen getting into a silver car with those he had met, before ringing his friend Lucy the morning after to tell her he was on his way home after missing the bus.
"Their apartment was miles away from civilisation and in a very secluded location," Lucy said.
"He left at 8am, and walked half an hour before frantically ringing me when his phone reached 1%."
She continued: "His last location was on an off road track, which was a 10 hour walk from his hotel.
"The weather conditions up there are terrible for someone in shorts & a t-shirt, both in the day & at night.
"He has no water for when it’s warm through out the day, and he has no coat/suitable clothing for when it’s cold at night."
In the run-up to the trip - his first abroad without his parents - mum Debbie Duncan said Jay had been saving up and was really looking forward to it.
"I was loving that he was going and saying you'll love it, you'll come back and you'll want to go again," she said.
"Now I just wish I hadn't encouraged him to go."
Since he went missing a huge search has been ongoing at the remote location where his phone was last tracked.Emergency crews have been combing the area in the Rural de Teno Park near the village of Masca, close to a route which is popular with hikers.
Photos, shared to Facebook, by the Bomberos Voluntarios de Santiago del Teide, the volunteer firefighters, show crews hard at work searching the mountainous terrain.
The volunteer firefighters confirmed they were working with police, the mountain civil guard, the dogs unit and Jay's family and friends.They said: "On Tuesday morning, at 2:17 a.m. we are given a notice to search for the missing young man in Masca.
"A vehicle and personnel were dispatched to the site and together with firefighters based on Icod and officers from the civil guard of the mountain rescue team carried out a search in the area of the Ilda Mirador.
"Yesterday, Wednesday at 14:38 we were activated to continue with the search for the young man moving 4 vehicles with 16 firefighters together with local police, firefighters from Guia de Isora, mountain civil guard, Guardia Civil unit of civil guard dogs, family and friends of the young man."Jay's friend Lucy has now also set up a Go Fund Me page to raise funds to pay for his family and friends to stay in Tenerife to assist the search.
A Go Fund Me spokesperson confirmed the page has been 'verified', with more than £15,000 raised so far.
Nelson and Colne College Group, where Jay is currently undertaking a bricklaying course, said its thoughts were with their student's family.
A spokesperson said: “We are deeply concerned about the recent news regarding one of our apprentices, Jay Slater, who has gone missing while on holiday in Tenerife.
"The safety and well-being of our students are of upmost importance to us, and our thoughts at this worrying time are with Jay’s family and friends.”
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