Search called off for sailor and his yacht that went missing off the Costa Blanca
Maritime Rescue has suspended its active search and rescue operations after weeks with no trace of the nine-metre yacht ‘Admirante’
After weeks of searching by sea and air, Spain’s Maritime Rescue service has officially called off the hunt for a missing sailing boat that vanished while travelling along the Valencian coast earlier this month.
The yacht, ‘Admirante’, left the port of Gandía (in the province of Valencia) on Thursday January 15 bound for Guardamar del Segura but never arrived. All contact with its skipper, the boat’s sole crew member, was lost that same day.
The alarm was raised by his wife, who reported that she had not heard from him since a phone call the previous evening, during which he said he believed he was somewhere near Benidorm.
The search operation began on January 16 and quickly expanded into a large-scale effort. Maritime Rescue deployed planes and helicopters, while rescue vessels scoured the sea and the Civil Guard carried out radar monitoring along the route between Gandía and Guardamar.
At one point, hopes were raised when the skipper himself managed to call the 112 emergency number. During the call, he said he was adrift after losing engine power and had very limited resources on board, including a phone battery that was close to running out. However, he was unable to give his exact location before the call ended.
Despite days of intensive searching, no trace of the boat or its skipper has been found. Maritime Rescue has now decided to suspend active operations, citing the lack of new information after over a week of concerted effort.
Still, authorities have stressed that the case is not yet closed entirely. Alerts remain in place, and vessels navigating the stretch of sea between Gandía and Guardamar del Segura have been asked to report any possible sightings of the yacht or its crew.
Officials have also made clear that if any credible new information comes to light, maritime and air search resources would be mobilised again immediately.
Image: Salvamento Marítimo
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