Scottish hiker rescued from Tenerife ravine during search for Jay Slater 

A Scottish hiker has been rescued by Spanish police from a Tenerife ravine during the search for missing British teen Jay Slater.

Local police in Buenavista del Norte alongside the Civil Protection mountain rescue team located the 51-year-old hiker from Scotland in the Asomada Canyon region of the Los Carrizales area on the island on Friday.

The man, who has not been named, was observed by local residents to have entered a difficult area of the trail to access from in the morning in the Rural de Tene national park region.

He did not return to the starting point after several hours, with residents contacting the police who were in the area at the time searching for missing 19-year-old Jay Slater.

Police described the hiker as “tired and disoriented” as he was helped out of a ravine by rescue teams.

A post on Facebook read: “Neighbours of the place, observed as said hiker entered from very early on through an area of difficult access not suitable for transit and after several hours passed without returning to the starting point, alerted the agents who were at those moments in the search for the missing young man, Jay Slater.

“Tired and disoriented he was located by the officers and rescue team who helped him get out of the ravine.

“We want to thank these neighbours for giving alert to this situation because due to the difficulty and lack of communication in the area, this hiker would not have managed to get out by his own means without the help received.”

Mr Slater was last heard from on the morning of Monday, June 17 after attending a music festival with two friends on the Spanish island.

The teen from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, disappeared following an attempt to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus.

The walk from Mr Slater’s last known location, Rural de Teno Park in the north of the island, to his accommodation would have taken about 11 hours on foot.

A fundraiser set up by the last person to speak to Mr Slater hit its target of £30,000 on Sunday.

The GoFundMe created by Lucy Law to “get Jay Slater home” had received £33,000 in donations by Monday morning.

A post on the page from Mr Slater’s mother, Debbie Duncan, confirmed the fundraiser was “approved by our family”.

The post, published on Sunday, said: “We have not yet withdrawn any funds and are currently covering the expenses, such as the trip to Tenerife and accommodation, ourselves.

“The funds will remain on hold with GoFundMe until we post a further update on this page.

“We are extremely worried and are doing everything we can to find Jay.”

PA Media

A GoFundMe spokesperson said: “We are in touch with Jay Slater’s mother, Debbie, and working with her to keep everyone updated on how their donations will be used in the search.

“For now, the money is with GoFundMe as we work through the next steps.”

Ms Law said her friend told her in a frantic phone call last Monday at 8.30am that he was “lost in the mountains, he wasn’t aware of his surroundings, he desperately needed a drink and his phone was on 1%”.

Search teams in Tenerife narrowed their efforts over the weekend on small buildings close to where his phone last pinged.

Officers from the Guardia Civil in the Canary Islands could be seen circling two structures at the bottom of a ravine in Rural de Teno Park on Sunday.

Efforts appeared to be solely focused on the one area after days of searches in the village of Masca and the surrounding landscape.

The efforts come after the teenager’s mother issued a direct plea to her missing son, saying: “We just need you home.”

Debbie Duncan said she had “not slept” since the 19-year-old disappeared.

Mr Slater was last seen wearing a white T-shirt with shorts and trainers, and carrying a black bag.

Follow STV News on WhatsApp

Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country