Inside gruelling hunt for Jay Slater in 2,000ft ‘badlands’ ravine where air is thin & cops face sheer drops into sea

THE HUNT for missing British teenager Jay Slater enters its sixth day today as cops scour a brutal and sparse area of northern Tenerife.

Mountain rescue turned their efforts to an area known locally as “the badlands” yesterday, scouring a 2,000ft ravine in a remote park.

Brit teen Jay Slater has been missing in Tenerife since Monday

Ian Whittaker

The search for missing Jay enters its sixth day today – with cops scouring remote parkland in northern Tenerife[/caption]

PA

Locals and experts have warned of the treacherous terrain up in Masca[/caption]

Ian Whittaker

Mountain rescue and firefighters are scouring the uneven terrain[/caption]

Pictures from the scene show cops, firefighters, volunteers and sniffer dogs scanning the desolate Teno Nature Reserve, Jay’s last known location.

Locals and experts have warned of the treacherous conditions in the area – where the air is “thin” and temperatures change rapidly.

Lancashire teen Jay, 19, vanished on Monday while on holiday with two friends and hasn’t been seen since.

He left a rave with two people he’d just met on Sunday night, stayed at their AirBnB in the village of Masca and missed his bus home on Monday.

Jay made a frantic phone call to pal Lucy Law to tell her he was stranded in the “middle of nowhere” and appeared to embark on an 11-hour trek home.

An urgent round-the-clock search was quickly launched, with Jay’s heartbroken mum and family jetting to the island to join the hunt.

Today police efforts are spread across 30 kilometres in and around the Masca area where Jay was last seen.

A local car rental owner has warned of the treacherous conditions in the parklands where efforts are concentrated.

Andrew Knight, who runs Sanasty Car Hire Tenerife, has lent his vehicles to help in the hunt.

He told The Mirror: “You’re up there, it’s very thin air, you’ve got cloud around.

“It does go very cold at night, especially with the thin air and the wind chill.

“It would be pretty cold if you were up there without jumpers and jackets and things.”

The 29-year-old warned that the weather up in the hills is also “constantly changing”.

Ian Whittaker

Rescue workers gather in northern Tenerife for day six of the search[/caption]

Ian Whittaker

Officials peer over a steep bridge in Masca during the hunt for Jay[/caption]

Ian Whittaker

A rescue worker peers into a telescope today[/caption]

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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’ by locals
• 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”
• His family have endured days of bogus theories and sick messages from trolls
• Cops searched the teen’s hotel room in Tenerife for clues on Wednesday

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Jay’s last-known location was on a mountain road on the north west side of the island on Monday.

He was facing at least a 11-hour walk home after missing the bus and ended up trekking through the harsh environment.

An area popular with hikers, the park includes challenging trails, uneven terrain and sharp drops down into the water below.

Vicente Infante, from the Tenerife Mountain Federation, previously warned of the dangers of hiking there without proper gear.

He said: “Hikers in the past were prepared, used suitable footwear, helmets… In short, they carried all the equipment.”

“What happens nowadays is that many people go with normal trainers, shorts, shirts… that’s where the risks are.

“More and more people are going, so sooner or later an accident will happen. It’s inevitable.”

The apprentice bricklayer Jay, 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 11-hour trek back to his hotel on Monday morning.

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.

British cops yesterday offered to help in the search for Jay.

But Lancashire Police said Spain’s Guardia Civil turned down its “offer of support” to help in the search for the teen.

Jay Slater (right) pictured with his brother Zak and mum Debbie – who both flew out to the island after he went missing