Yahoo News All you need to know about 'badlands' at heart of missing Jay Slater search
Missing Brit Jay Slater is believed to have disappeared in the beautiful yet most dangerous area of Tenerife nicknamed ‘badlands’ due to the terrain.
The tiny hamlet of Masca clings to the rocky outcrops of northwestern Tenerife in the far-flung Teno Nature Reserve. It is one of the most remote parts of Tenerife, and in the past few years more rescues have been carried out here than anywhere else in the Canary Islands, according to the website of the Masca visitors centre.
The search for 19-year-old Jay, from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, is now into its sixth day after he was last heard from by a friend last Monday. He was attempting to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus.
He had attended the NRG music festival on the island with two friends before his disappearance. The owner of the Airbnb property he was reportedly driven to, who gave her name as Ophelia, told reporters she saw Jay walk up the road past her property but did not see him again after that – describing the situation as worrying.
Helicopters, rescue dogs and drones have been used in an effort to find the teenager. Officers have been seen peering over the hillside and staring intently at the landscape through binoculars near Masca.
Search teams paid close attention to a river called Barranco Madre del Agua at the bottom of a 2,000ft ravine, where personnel with sticks carefully searched through fallen dead palm trees. Jonathan Stones who moved to Tenerife when he was aged 13 reportedly said how the Teno Nature Reserve is treacherous and known as ‘bad land’ locally.
He told The Sun: “Where Jay was last located through his mobile phone is where he stands the least chance of survival. 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’.”
He told of rapidly changing temperatures where it can go from being cold to extremely hot by 11am. “With no shade in sight, no water to hand and a deep ravine, the sun becomes an even more fierce adversary,” Jonathan continued. “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.”
Visitors to the Teno Nature Reserve have also written posts on Trip Advisor about the treacherous conditions. One person, under the title 'dangerous' stated: "The road is very dangerous, the track goes below cliffs and is very narrow, there is a sign saying that you are entering into a danger zone and if you continue it is your own responsibility. I think for this reason there are not many people here. Complete nature … wind, waves, sun, mountains and a small lighthouse, incredible."
