The father and brother of Jay Slater, the British teenager who has been missing in Tenerife since Monday, have made an emotional appeal for his safe return.
The 19-year-old’s father, Warren Slater, he wished someone had helped him off the mountain.
He added: “I just want him back, that’s it. He’s my son.”
In a cracking voice, Mr Slater said the past few days had been “a nightmare, a complete nightmare”.
He struggled to control his emotions, walking away from the camera as he repeated, “I just want him back, that’s all.” “We don’t know where he is, what happened, or anything else. I don’t know what to say. We just want him to come home safe.”
He also grew emotional, saying, “I just hope he comes home.” He had been on holiday with friends before his disappearance. He had been at the NRG music festival with two friends on Sunday.
He was last heard from just after 8am on Monday, when he called his girlfriend, Lucy Law, to tell her he’d missed the bus and was walking back to his accommodation.
It is unclear whether he realised the journey could take up to 11 hours.
Ms Law said he told her he was lost, needed water and had only one per cent charge on his phone.
On Saturday, the sixth day of the search, police, rescue dogs and firefighters reunited with Slater at Rural de Teno park, the last location recorded on his phone.
Lancashire Police said Slater was from the Lancashire town of Oswaldtwistle, where specialist officers were continuing to support his family.
Police added that they had “offered private security assistance to see if additional resources were needed”, but the Spanish authorities rejected this.
Mother of missing teenage boy ‘hasn’t been able to sleep’
The mother of an apprentice bricklayer, also on the Canaries’ largest island, appealed directly to her missing son: “I’m at home.”
Debbie Duncan said she had “not slept” since his disappearance.
When asked how the family were coping with the situation she replied: “We’re not coping well at all. Not sleeping, we’re tired. It’s awful.” I can’t give up on him, I just can’t.”
Asked by the Press Association if her head was spinning from the past few days, she said: “It is, it is.
“People say: ‘Yeah, I understand’ – no, you don’t, you don’t understand.”
Speaking about what message she would have for her son, Ms Duncan added: “We just need you home – we just need him home.”
