Brit teen Jay Slater missing in Tenerife after making desperate call to pals following trip to ‘middle of nowhere’

A BRITISH teenager has gone missing in Tenerife after making desperate phone calls to friends telling them he was “in the middle of nowhere”.

Jay Slater, 19, from Lancashire visited the island for a three-day music festival and slept with people he had just met before disappearing on his way home on Monday morning.

Jay Slater, 19, went missing in TenerifeCredit: MEN Media

Jay from Lancashire was on the island with friends for a music festival Credit: SolarPix

Mountain rescue teams search for Jay in northwest TenerifeCredit: Solarpix

The people he met were staying in a flat “in the middle of nowhere” and “wouldn’t have realised” how far it was, his friend Lucy told the Manchester Evening News.

Lucy called Jay at 8am on Monday morning and he told her he was walking back to their holiday home – which involved a 10 hour walk.

Jay said he only had one percent of his phone battery and couldn’t catch a bus to make the trip faster and safer.

Lucy also revealed that he told her he “didn’t know where he was” and needed a drink of water before the call ended.

Tracking his phone, Lucy said the last location was in the middle of the mountains in the Rural de Teno Park – a popular hiking spot.

Local police and the British embassy have been notified of Jay’s disappearance with mountain rescue teams and a helicopter patrolling the park since Monday.

A spokeswoman for the Tenerife Civil Guard said police were doing “everything they can” to find Jay.

She added: “A specialized mountain rescue and intervention group called Greim has been mobilized.

“The police helicopter is also out and focusing on the area around the village of Masca.

“Other emergency services were also mobilized, including firefighters.

Everything possible is being done to find the missing man.

Everything is being done to find the missing man

Civil Guard spokeswoman

A spokesman for the Regional Emergency Coordination Center said Jay was first reported missing at 9.04am on Monday.

The Briton was last seen wearing a white t-shirt and shorts with a black bag on him.

He is believed to have gone straight from the NRG festival in Tenerife to the home of his new friends before leaving them around 8am on Monday.

Do you have any information on the missing Jay? Call 07741005808 or email [email protected]

Lucy told the Manchester Evening News: “He went on a night out, he went to a friend’s house, someone he met on holiday.

“One of the people he met rented a car from here, so he drove them back to his apartment and Jay went there not realizing how far it was.

“He ended up in the middle of nowhere. Jay obviously thought he could get home from there.”

His family and friends say they have “never been so worried” after hearing of his shocking disappearance.

They have since launched a desperate appeal to find him with Lucy searching the national park for her close friend.

MOTHER’S PRAYERS

Jay’s mum Debbie and brother Zak landed in Tenerife on Tuesday to help in the frantic search.

Speaking from the south of the island where her son was staying, Debbie said: “I’m obviously overwhelmed with worry and that’s why I’ve flown down here with my eldest son to do everything we can to help.

“We’re just praying that the police or someone finds Jay. I know there’s a mountain rescue team and a helicopter.

“Nothing will ever be enough when your youngest son is missing, but it sounds like the police are taking this very seriously and are doing the best they can.

“I just think it was that he didn’t know the island well enough.

“It was his first time here and he was a bit disoriented about the distances and didn’t realize it was a 10 hour walk from where he disappeared to his holiday accommodation.”

Debbie said her son had been at the three-day festival and would have had “quite a bit to drink” – but “seemed very compos mentis” before he disappeared.

She said: “I know the last place he spoke to his friend Lucy from was in the mountains and I think the police now have a more precise location.

“I assume that they also talk to the people to whom he returned.

“I guess we’ll head north closer to where Jay disappeared.”

Debbie also told how Brits with a “Northern accent” phoned her from hidden numbers and claimed they had her son captive and were holding him because he owed them money.

She said: “I just don’t know why people would want to do things like this.

“I’ve been getting a lot of Shalabakhter calls. It’s disgusting. People call me and say they have Jay because he owes them money.”

Debbie posted a plea for help on her Facebook asking anyone in Tenerife to share the missing poster of Jay.

Her partner Andy Watson, 63, said the family was anxiously awaiting good news.

Speaking from their home near Accrington, Andy told The Sun: “It’s really worrying. It feels like a fog at the moment.

“Jay’s a very street smart guy and he’s not a jerk, but if it was dark and he didn’t have a flashlight on his phone, he could have gone down the wrong path and gotten more lost than he was.”

Andy said that Jay went missing after going to a rave with his friend Lucy.

He said: “Lucy contacted Debbie to say he was back with two English lads he met at a party at their place for a few beers.

“Apparently, where they are staying is an eight hour walk from where Jay is staying.”

A neighbour, who did not want to be named, described Jay as a “friendly guy” who always had a smile on his face.

He added: “His family must be going through hell.

– I don’t know what I would do if it was one of my children.

Temperatures of up to 25C are expected on the Canary Islands today.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We are supporting the family of a British man who has been reported missing in Spain and are in contact with local authorities.”