MISSING Jay Slater is thought to be lost in an area of Tenerife locals call “the badlands”, it emerged last night.
The six-day search for the 19-year-old has now honed in on a 2,000ft-deep ravine in a remote, desert-like park.
Helicopters have been seen soaring above, while firefighters, volunteers and police scour the perilous cactus-strewn terrain below.
Jonathan Stones, who moved to Tenerife more than two decades ago at 13, said the Teno Nature Reserve is one of the island’s most inhospitable spots.
He told The Sun: “Where Jay was last located through his mobile phone is where he stands the least chance of survival.
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“The desolate landscapes around the island’s holiday hotspots are referred to as ‘malpais’ by locals — a word that translates into English as ‘bad land’.”
It comes as...
- Bombshell new vid shows Jay at a rave hours being he vanished
- Pics show Airbnb teen partied at before going missing
- Jay was spotted 'walking alone' into mountains by Airbnb owner
- Jay's mum was sent a message saying "kiss goodbye to your son" amid family fears he's been kidnapped
- She gave a tearful plea and said "I just want my baby back"
- Cops searched the teen's hotel room in Tenerife for clues
- A possible new sighting of the teen placed him with two men on Monday at 6pm - 10 hours after he vanished
- Brit cops offered to fly out and help but Spanish officials said no
- Jay’s mum slammed the Tenerife police investigation
The former journalist, 50, warned the searing heat could be deceptive, with comfortable temperatures in the morning turning into roasting highs by 11am.
He added: “With no shade in sight, no water to hand and a deep ravine, the sun becomes an even more fierce adversary.
“And the shadowy respite offered by the hilltops is short-lived.
"The sun moves around the mountain sides quickly and anyone sheltering behind a craggy outcrop is soon flushed from their hide in search of the next one.
“I hope desperately that it’s a riddle solved in time for Jay to be reunited safely with his family.”
Jay’s last-known location was on a mountain road on the north west side of the island on Monday.
The apprentice bricklayer, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancs, had travelled to a rental property in the village of Masca with two pals he met at a festival rave on Sunday night.
The owner of the Airbnb said Jay asked about a local bus before attempting the almost 10-hour trek back to his hotel on Monday morning.
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Ophelia, the owner of the holiday rental Casa Abuela Tina - where Jay stayed on Sunday - has said she is "very worried about" the teen.
She said she saw him walking off on his own uphill in the vast mountainous area near Masca.
Pal Lucy revealed she had tracked down the house where Jay stayed - and was told he had left on Monday morning.
The two men said Jay went out for cigarettes before going back to the property and saying he wanted to go home.
A former cop and missing persons expert Charlie Hedges told The Sun that two key steps must now be taken in the search to find Jay.
Ex-detective Hedges explained how cops first need to construct a profile of Jay - from everything from his personality to his fitness - to try figure out his thinking.
By reconstructing how Jay may think they will be able to narrow down the search area - and try to piece together his last movements.
He said: “One is on the investigation side to investigate or understand Jay, what his personality is, what he's like, fitness, what he was doing - w know he was at the party and moved off.
“And then also look at the last place he was seen, which gives us the first start for the search.
“And then looking at different hypotheses to just try and determine what might have happened.”
Hedges, who worked for Thams Valley Police, warned online sleuths to leave the search for the missing teen to the professionals as they may harm the investigation instead of helping.
He urged the public not to take it upon themselves to help the search as he noted despite their best intentions they may end up causing more trouble.
