Hopes fading fast in Minorca hunt for missing 50-year-old

Search and rescue workers returned to base in Mahon, Minorca yesterday at the end of the third day searching for the missing 50-year-old Gabriel Echevarría, empty handed. Gabriel Echevarría disappeared on Wednesday evening and the alarm was raised when a fisherman spotted his Zodiac spinning round in circles with the engine running and nobody aboard 400 metres out from the marina at Cala Bosch. For the past three days teams from the Red Cross, Ciutadella fire station and the Civil protection department have been combing the area and on Friday morning a unit of highly professional Guardia Civil flew to the island to start searching the sea bed for the missing man's body. Yesterday the search zone was expanded to include the area between Son Xoriguer and Es Talaier. Last night the search crews were expected to meet in order to decide whether or not the hunt will resume this morning.