British sailor, 73, missing off French coast after boat found ‘gutted’

A British sailor is missing in the Bay of Biscay off the coast of France after his yacht was discovered ‘gutted’ in stormy weather.

The 73-year-old man, who has not been identified, was sailing in a boat named the Tiger PA on Friday evening when the UK authorities raised concerns about a lack of response to radio messages.

A cargo ship later managed to make contact with the yacht and the man said he was safe, according to the Atlantic Maritime Prefecture.

However, at 3pm the next day a distress signal from the Tiger PA was detected around 50 miles off the coast of Lacanau and a rescue team was launched.

Two and a half hours later, the helicopter found the yacht ripped open. A pair of divers who were winched down discovered an empty life raft.

A Spanish hospital ship joined the search for the missing man, along with a French navy aircraft and a cargo ship sailing under the Portuguese flag.

The search was suspended at 1.33am today due to a lack of new information.

According to the website VesselFinder, the 12m Tiger PA departed Weymouth port in Dorset on January 20, around a day and a half after arriving there.

The prefecture urged people to take ‘precautionary measures’ if going to sea ‘during the winter period with numerous depressions’.

Storm Eowyn brought winds of around 55mph to northern France on Friday morning, with heavy rain also hitting the area.

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