Ria Formosa, missing Brit likely to have drowned

culatraCove A British man has been missing for several days and now is presumed to have fallen from his yacht moored in the Ria Formosa lagoon and drowned.

The man’s yacht was moored off the Island of Culatra. A mobile phone and computer were found onboard but the 65-year-old has been missing since Thursday.

The maritime authorities are pretty certain that the man has fallen into the sea and a team of divers has been searching the area during daylight hours.

The Captain of the Port of Olhão said the man’s wife raised the alarm after she had tried without success to contact him by phone. Her last contact was on Tuesday by email.

When Maritime Police offciers boarded the boat, they found a computer, a heater that was still switched on and his mobile phone.

After a second visit to the yacht several hours later, the police found that nothing had been disturbed and a search by divers discovered clothing trapped under the vessel.

Captain Nunes Ferreira said the clues point to a scenario of ‘man overboard’ but this can not yet be confirmed. Locals have been asked to be on the lookout for a body.

According to the Captain, the man was in the habit of spending long periods aboard his vessel where he was undertaking maintenance and repairs.

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