The search for missing British teenager Jay Slater in Tenerife continues as Spanish police have declined an offer of assistance from Lancashire constabulary. Despite the Lancashire police offering support to the Guardia Civil to provide additional resources, the Spanish authorities have confirmed that they currently have sufficient resources for the search.
Jay Slater, a 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer from Oswaldtwistle, was last heard from on Monday morning when he contacted a friend between 8 am and 9 am. He was last seen in the north-western mountain village of Masca after leaving the holiday cottage of some men he had met at the NRG music festival in the south of the island. Slater had attempted to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus, a journey that would have taken about 11 hours from his last known location.
Search and rescue teams, along with police and firefighters, have been combing the area in and around Masca in search of the missing teenager. Despite extensive searches throughout the rugged terrain, including hillsides, rivers, and overgrown areas, Slater has not been located.
On the fifth day of the search, attention was focused on a river called Barranco Madre del Agua at the bottom of a ravine, with personnel carefully examining fallen trees in the area. The search efforts have also concentrated near the Rural de Teno park, where teams looked through dead palm trees covering a river at the bottom of a hillside near the Airbnb property where Slater was reportedly driven to.
Slater’s family and friends, including his mother Debbie Duncan who flew to Tenerife to join the search, are described as “drained beyond words” in a Facebook post on the Jay Slater Missing page. A fundraiser set up to assist in bringing Jay Slater home has received over £24,900 in donations, showing the outpouring of support for the missing teenager.
Lucy Law, who was with Slater at the music festival, received a call from him on Monday morning stating that he was lost in the mountains, disoriented, thirsty, and with a nearly dead phone battery. Law has called for British police to get involved in the investigation and has expressed criticism of the local search efforts.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has stated that they are in contact with the local authorities in Spain and are providing support to Slater’s family during this difficult time. As the search for Jay Slater continues, his loved ones remain hopeful for his safe return and are grateful for the support and assistance from the community.